Buses Brimming to Capacity With Semana Santa
Vacationers
Looking to get away for the Semana Santa?
There is still time, but the lines at bus stations and the airports are
long.
A visit to the local bus stations around San José tells the story of
people doing what they can to take advantage of the Semana Santa holiday
break from work, to visit with family and friends.
Packed to the limit with food, clothing and lots of emotion, the bus
stations are brimming to capacity to meet the travel demands of this
time of year.
Transnica which offers multiple daily buses to Nicaragua has had to add
several buses to their schedule and those who didn't buy a ticket early
will have to make the line in the hopes of finding a last minute seat
from someone who chose or couldn't travel.
Buses to the beaches are crammed with those getting away from San José.
Finding a spot to sit while waiting for a bus is a dream. Bus stations
like the Los Caribeños that provide daily buses to and from the Province
of Limón, Tralapa on the south side that goes to points south and the
Alfaro station at La Coca Cola that heads for points west are all to
capacity.
The lines start early in the morning with the first buses leaving around
7am.
The rush is to not only get away early. Buses will not be running on
Thursday and Friday.
For local transportation, some bus lines will not operate at all while
others will be on a reduced schedule for Thursday and Friday. For
example, the TUASA buses that run from Alajuela to San José, with a stop
at the airport, will be running buses every 35-45 minutes instead of the
10-15 minutes during regular days.
Other bus lines like those that run to Pavas and Escazú for example will
be running once every 45 minutes to an hour instead of the regular every
15 minutes.
Taxi companies and operators will count with a reduced number of cars on
the streets and service, and some not taking any radio calls at all on
Friday. It is not known how many independent taxi operators will be
working during Thursday and Friday, but it can be expected to be lower
than usual.
Those driving will see an increased presence of Transit police on the
highways, as the the Transit authority is serious about reducing the
number of traffic fatalities during this holiday period. Drinking and
driving is the number one cause of many of the accidents, followed by
speeding.
Transit officials will be out in full force, with over 700 officials on
during until Sunday night, when the exodus back to San José is expected.
Last year, Transit officials gave out 14.291 tickets and seized a total
241 vehicles (89 related to drinking and driving). As well, they found
drivers driving without or a suspended license, vehicles with no license
plates and variety of mechanical problems, mainly malfunctioning lights.
For those who will be remaining in San José during Semana Santa will
find it quiet. There will be less people on the streets - both
pedestrian and vehicular - and with the closing of bars and the sale of
alcohol on Thursday and Friday, there is even less reason to go out.
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Bus stations in San José at full capacity with Semana Santa
vacationers, who are taking advantage of the break from work to
visit with friends and family and visit the beaches. |
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What Semana Santa is for most -
the sun and the beach! |
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