Despite the full operation of the online booking system in line with the holiday season, the Davao City Overland Transport Terminal (DCott) revealed that there are still passengers who opt to buy tickets inside the terminal.
The terminal monitored that only a few passengers booked their tickets online since its official launch earlier this year.
“Wala pa kaayo kabalo ang atoang katawhan nga aduna tay online [ticketing system]. Sa atoang pag-check, gamay ra ang nagpa-book (The people still don't know that we have an online [ticketing system]. When we checked, only few people have booked),” DCott manager, Aisa Usop bared in an AFP-PNP press briefing on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
The official then cited that they have been collaborating with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) for additional routes, particularly bus companies that usually operate outside the jurisdiction of the Davao Region.
“That is why, diha sa sulod sa atoang terminal, giingnan nato ang atoang bus operators nga magkuha og advance special permit sa atoang LFTRB ilabina mga byahe nga padulong Cagayan de Oro City ug Bukidnon. Kani sila na mga rota, based on experience, daghan gyud og mga pasahero (That is why, we told our bus operators inside our terminal to get an advance special permit to our LTFRB especially for travels going to Cagayan de Oro City and Bukidnon. These routes, based on experience, have many passengers),” the official added.
It can be noted that the idea of online booking of tickets was created to cater to the influx of passengers during the Undas and Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) 2023. This was also seen as a solution to ease the hassle of queuing as well as serves as the main basis for the operators in requesting special permits for their additional bus trips.
“Murag sa airport, solution pud ni sya para di-mahago ang atoang mga pasahero. So ang need nalang nila buhaton is to access the website nga posted sa atoang Facebook page and easy steps lang ang need nila i-follow (The same as in the airport, it's also a solution for the comfortability of our passengers. So all they need to do is to access the website posted on our Facebook page and they only need to follow easy steps),” Usop emphasized. DEF