There is still a bit of a holiday hangover coming from a long weekend of wearing comfy Christmas sweaters, eating anything that you fancy of the Christmas leftovers, and just lounging at home watching movies and TV.

Yes, it feels so sour to have to go back to work and face your laptop screen again after being so relaxed and comfortable during the long holiday. Suddenly, we are all back to reality. We need to work, we need to pay the bills, we need to function as regular adults again after being so distracted with the holiday season. Going back to the city if you went home to your province should not be much trouble, in fact it should be smooth sailing.

This year, there was a record 4.7-million passengers at the ports, higher than last year. This means that more and more Filipinos are relying on maritime transport to be with their loved ones. Unfortunately, the annual surge of passengers remains a challenge to the shipping industry despite the much improved and bigger port infrastructure and passenger terminal buildings constructed by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA).

Why despite the early preparations at the ports for the larger volume of passengers during the peak season were they still complaining about the long lines and the chaos? Well, there have always been two critical issues at play here — the first is the lack of ships for the growing number of passengers and, second, the inefficiency of the online ticketing system.

The number of vessels available during peak seasons has been a long-standing issue, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at the ports, especially chance passengers.

Adding to the passengers’ stress are the system crashes and the limited payment options of the supposedly convenient online ticketing system, not to mention the lack of real-time updates that forces passengers to queue for tickets. This leads to hours of waiting in line at ticket counters only to find out that tickets had been sold out when they get to the head of the line. I know, right? It is frustrating and definitely annoying.

The combination of the two major factors is not only making the passengers’ plight even more difficult, but is tarnishing the reputation of the shipping companies and every agency in the maritime and transportation industry. There is obviously a need for a more systematic ticketing system that would allow for better planning in the deployment of vessels.

Now let me ask you — how can we avoid the problems that we currently have?

We could plan ahead and take proactive measures. Yes, right, but how can planning and measures be done right if there is no specific information and a working system that tells us how many passengers there will be so the appropriate number of ships could be deployed? It all boils down to a working and more organized online system.

In this digital age of AI and technology, how are we still not modernizing and optimizing the online ticketing system to handle the high volume of passengers and ensure real time updates? Why are we still not into digital apps and multiple payment options to make ticket purchases and vessel deployment available for all? We are still backwards and in the dinosaur era of having to fall in line for hours to purchase tickets over the counter.

If we are now in the age of AI making photos move and dance, how come we cannot use AI to forecast overbooking and manage the seats available to passengers? Well, your guess is as good as mine. I wish for that too, you know. From there, these yearly problems may be solved, lessened and, who knows, eradicated.

Reforms must involve every government agency and the stakeholders to ensure more efficient travel and to preserve the spirit of the holidays. After all, no one wants to be stuck in a passenger terminal during the most wonderful time of the year. Remember, we are all in the same boat (hopefully a modern one).