Brunei's Local News - Brudirect.com

Bangar - Hundreds of people, comprising families, backpackers, tourists and individuals, packed the jetty in Temburong's Bangar Town yesterday, all eager to make it back to the capital before nightfall.

The surge of travellers was the result of school holidays coinciding with the Cuti-Cuti Temburong 2008 programme, according to an employee from one of the jetty's speedboat operators.

The employee said that "flights," or speedboat shuttles from Temburong to Bandar Seri Begawan and vice versa began at six in the morning and services would continue until all passengers had a ride to their destination. Normally, 10 or 20 flights would be available on an average day. However, since it was the school holidays and the

Cuti-Cuti Temburong was also taking place, the company had to increase the number of flights to accommodate the people.

She said that it was not unusual to see such a high turnout at this time of the year. She said that some people would not be able to get a flight if they registered too late and would have to try to get a boat with another company which also operates at the same jetty.

One female passenger who was waiting with her two children said that there was a wedding earlier in the day and the guests filled up several flights, forcing many to wait for hours.

Another woman expressed displeasure with the services provided, as she was worried that she would not be able to make it to a seminar in the capital.

Clearly frustrated, she told The Brunei Times that the relevant authorities should be better prepared to accommodate a rise in passengers, especially since it was the holiday season.

"They know there is going to be a lot of people during this time of the year," she said. "They should add another company or more boats."

A 41-year-old male, who works part-time as a tour guide said that there were a lot of people coming back from their holiday in Kota Kinabalu.

"It's Sunday and some are coming back in time for the Islamic New Year tomorrow. It's also school holidays, so there are a lot of people going back and forth (from the capital to Temburong and vice versa)," he said.

Nurul, Titeh and Yusri, a group of friends who were on their way back to the capital after having experienced a one-day tour package at the Ulu Ulu National Park Resort, were among those waiting for their flight at the jetty.

They did not mind the wait, but expressed their concerns on some of the jetty's facilities.They said that it was dirty and small, calling for more trash receptacles to be supplied and the jetty itself to be expanded.

Two companies operated flights to and from the capital and the Temburong district. Depending on the company, each boat could accommodate 18 or 20 passengers per flight. -- Courtesy of The Brunei Times