THE Davao City Overland Transport Terminal (Dcott) has assured commuters that there are ample buses to accommodate everyone.
Dcott manager Aisa Usop, in a radio interview on Monday, October 30, said they have coordinated with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to deploy extra buses in response to the surge in passengers.
Usop noted that on Friday, October 27, the LTFRB issued special permits for an additional 42 buses to cater to passengers traveling to their provinces.
She said they have been monitoring the passenger flow and the allocation of priority lanes for senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWD), and pregnant women.
The terminal has ceased implementing the 20 to 30-minute interval for buses and now operates on a full-capacity basis, accommodating 49 to 56 passengers per bus. Usop conveyed her directive to bus operators to promptly dispatch full buses to maintain efficiency.
“I already instructed our bus operators na once mapuno, larga dayon, pa-anhaon na pod nato ang bus (I already instructed our bus operators that once the bus is full, it will go immediately so that another bus could go in),” Usop said.
Expressing concern for passenger safety, she discouraged the practice of passengers rushing to board buses at the entrance. She assured passengers that Dcott, in coordination with bus operators, has made arrangements to ensure everyone gets a ride home.
A Facebook post by Dcott-FMOD on Sunday, October 29, reported a steady influx of passengers, currently at a moderate to low volume. Dcott strongly advises commuters to plan their travel and avoid peak hours.
The heightened number of commuters is attributed to the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Elections (BSKE), as well as the observance of All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day observances.
The terminal routinely serves 25,000 to 30,000 passengers with 700 to 800 bus trips each day. RGP