Gwen mulls online ticketing system for CSBT

Commuters bound for south of Cebu for the All Saint’s Day and All Soul’s Day line up at the ticketing station of the Cebu South Bus Terminal on Thursday morning, October 31, 2019. CDN Digital photo | Raul Tabanao

Capitol mulls integrating online ticketing system to address long queues at Cebu South Bus Terminal

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Passengers using the Cebu South Bus Terminal (CSBT) may soon be rid of the long queues in buying tickets as the Capitol considers to integrate an online system in the booking of tickets.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said they would discuss this with bus companies soon on how to go about integrating their ticketing services online.

The move, Garcia said, would be to improve the experience of the passengers in the terminal following complaints that the “no ticket, no entry” policy in the terminal had caused long queues in the bus lines’ makeshift ticketing booths.

“We will try to further improve the system of ticketing. In fact,  the next step forward will be the putting up of the online ticketing system aron makakuha  na sila sa ilang mga (so that the passengers may already book their) tickets online,” Garcia said.

Read more: Boarding passes, instead of tickets, during peak hours at Cebu South Bus Terminal

Last October 29, the Capitol-run CSBT has started to implement the “no ticket, no entry” policy as a means of increasing the security of the terminal.

Under the policy, no one will be allowed to enter the terminal unless they have already claimed tickets from the makeshift booths at the entrance of the terminal.

This, however, caused long queues of passengers since the issuance of tickets would take some time considering the acceptance of payment and giving of the change to the passengers.

On Monday, November 18, the bus operators proposed to Garcia that entry passes would be instead given to passengers during peak travel seasons and weekends so that the passengers would be allowed to enter the lounge.

Representatives of the bus companies will be the ones to issue them tickets inside the passenger lounge.

Garcia stood pat that she would not retract the “no ticket, no entry” policy.

“Usahay it is really difficult to change something that you have been so used to. But you see, the downside man gud anang allowing just everybody to go inside is that mao na nga everybody can go in, passengers and non-passengers. And when this happens, it is their own safety and security (of the passengers) that is compromised,” Garcia said.

Meanwhile, Provincial Treasurer Roy Salubre, who is also taking charge of the operation of the terminal, said they were set to put up permanent ticketing booths for the bus lines in the terminal.

The Provincial Engineering Office, Salubre said, had already started with the design for the booths which would sit on the office spaces which were currently occupied by a laboratory and a cooperative.

“Gitagaan nato sila (tenants) until November 30 to vacate the area kay mao man to atong gamiton nga ticketing booth,” Salubre said.

(We are giving them until November 30 to vacate the area since we will use that area for the ticketing booths.)

The tenants had no contract with the CSBT management, Garcia said.

Even when the online booking system would have started, Garcia said passengers might still purchase bus tickets from the bus lines’ ticket booths./dbs