The Cavite-Batangas Bus Terminal (SWIPTS) - a year after

Last year, the Southwest Integrated Provincial Transport Terminal (SWIPTS) was inaugurated as first of 3-integrated bus terminals in Metro Manila to decongest the volume of vehicles plying inside the Philippine capital. SWIPTS services commuters to and from the province of Batangas and Cavite. It promised high tech queuing system certified with ISO9001 standards. A year after, let us see what has happened to this promising project of the government.



During its start of operations last August 6, 2013, the Metro Manila Development Authority, the agency responsible for the operation of the SWIPTS terminal is proud to present that the terminal will decongest the traffic in Metro Manila by not allowing provincial buses from Batangas and Cavite to enter Metro Manila. The terminal promises the following:

• State of the art biometric technology to verify the profile of the drivers entering the facility. This ensures professionalism of the drivers and safety of the passengers. 
• A high-tech transport queuing system to ensure that buses leave after 15 minutes.
• A display monitor around the terminal for queuing information.
• An air conditioned waiting room for passengers with television.
• CCTV coverage for security around the terminal.

All of these are operational starting August 6, 2013 except for the 15 minutes wait time for the buses that was not followed on early dawn due to lack of buses plying over the terminal during its initial weeks of operation.

Let's see which of this still exists or even improved today.


SWIPTS - A Year After

As time passed by, even if the amount of buses have increased as those that have no franchise have started registering to make use of the terminal, the 15 minutes wait time was never followed. This was escalated to MMDA twitter account October of last year but never had a response.

@MMDA i thought we have a 15min wait time at SWIPTS? Takes over an hour for a Ternate bound bus to fill it up full before moving.
— Ervin Malicdem (@schadow1) October 2, 2013

As this feature was never used, in no time, the queuing system has degraded, and the monitors are not utilized, dilapidated, malfunctioned, or used for another purpose other than what it is intended to as it is no longer there.

These Computerized Dispatch system monitors are no longer around the terminal. (Taken 2013)

Computerized Dispatch? The automated queuing system was eventually scrapped and was replaced by informal barkers earning tips from the bus operators. And so they can earn more, the signage that says  "No Standing. Seating Capacity Only" is intentionally placed behind the large structural columns facing back, away to be seen by the commuters. With that, it is never followed. I always place the signage back to its position where it can be seen by the bus drivers but is then placed aback by the barkers after a few minutes.

No Standing Seating Capacity Signage intentionally put out of view by the barkers.

Even if there are around 10 buses in line, the bus at the start of the line never leaves until it is already full and overloaded with standing commuters in spite of the no standing policy. And if you intend to ride the bus next to it because you don't want to stand on the first bus, the barkers will discourage you and the driver for the next bus will not allow you to enter unless the first bus is already outside the terminal. At 2:00 AM, this is what always happen. The buses leave after an hour or two and not the designed 15 minutes queue.

There are a lot of buses but commuters are meant to suffer to wait for 2 hours just to leave jam-packed.

The biometric system was not used and the ticket booth no longer used and became dilapidated as well. It transformed to an air conditioned quarters for some of MMDA's officials at night with their uniform hanged by its glass windows.

Formerly a biometric ticket booth, now a sleeping quarters for personnel

The air conditioned waiting room is always closed and out of service while the operations office that was filled with monitoring computers and server for the queuing system is dark and uniforms of MMDA personnel are also hanged by the seats and probably used as a sleeping quarters too by the personnel themselves. And CCTV monitoring is only active for two cameras on two monitors while the other monitors with multiple CCTV screens I saw during its initial operation a year ago is no longer fuctioning or worse, no longer there.

The monitoring office is now a modified sleeping quarters for personnel with only 2 active CCTV screens.

The concrete used for the terminal is also substandard and is already in a poor condition only after a year of its operations.

The SWIPTS Terminal is not full of potholes in just after a year.

To conclude, none of the promised benefits and functionalities of this new terminal is even utilized a year after.

This is an example of how the Philippine government use the taxes we pay. They spend millions in creating a project and leave them behind for decay in less than a year after.

I doubt if they will still pass an ISO9001 audit this year.

Related Articles:

• Southwest IPTS (Cavite-Batangas Bus Terminal) Opens
• New Cavite Batangas Bus Terminal 
• Going in and out of Cavite