The “airport for buses” in Campanhã has had almost half a million passengers

Three months after the inauguration of the Terminal Intermodal de Campanhã (TIC), on July 20, it is already possible to do a balance of the operation: it was a time of “learning”, admits STCP Serviços, the management entity of that infrastructure. Between departures and arrivals, nearly half a million passengers passed through there.

The day showed a grey sky, matching the dominant colour in the Terminal Intermodal de Campanhã (TIC), but inside the grey concrete building, the weather conditions did not worry those who were waiting for their transport. Passengers were distributed throughout the ample and airy space, contributing to the statistics that feed the optimism of management: “We already have more than 500 departures per week. In terms of passengers, in these three months, we are talking about almost half a million. Everything has been very progressive”, welcomes the manager of STCP Serviços, Teresa Stanislau.

The numbers “live up to expectations,” she adds: “It's within what we expected. It was three months of learning for everyone. For us, who run the terminal. For the operators, and for the customers themselves. It is a process of habituation for everyone, because it is a terminal that works completely differently from the others”.

"Basically, we are in an airport for buses", compares the manager of STCP Serviços, detailing that there are no "specific bus piers". “Operators have to learn how to function on this system, all this is optimized. It has even been a very quick learning, although there are still somethings to correct”, she acknowledges.

“Everyone feels comfortable”

The change was also beneficial for passengers, believes Teresa Stanislau. “What they're telling us is that they like the building. Everyone feels comfortable and says that they had an improvement in relation to the conditions they had. They refer to the bathrooms, the cleaning", lists the person in charge. “We feel that some extra forwarding information is needed,” she says, admitting “some complaints, but especially of bus services, not so much of the building itself.”

Reflecting the commitment to efficient and sustainable public transport, as well as the ambition of the Municipality of Porto to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030, TIC "is a work designed to bring quality of life to Porto", says the manager of STCP Serviços. “Not only to those who visit us, because it has quality service upon arrival in the city, but especially to the people of Porto. From here, they too leave for the world – and no longer have their city full of buses, every day”, emphasizes Teresa Stanislau.

“We're getting hundreds of buses out of the city. In terms of emissions, of course this is reflected in the immediate, and even more so when we have a green roof and a park of this size", concludes.

Facing the green penthouse, the terrace of the TIC cafeteria is the place to “kill some time” while waiting. “We have a very nice space here. I think people are sticking together really well. In terms of conditions, there will always be something to adjust. But this is normal”, says Paula Gandra, who runs the cafeteria.

“This establishment, in my opinion, should be right next to the bus station, right down there. But anyone who wants to come to the cafeteria ends up looking for it”, adds the businesswoman, who has another space in the Terminal Rodoviário do Campo 24 de Agosto. Through its establishment in TIC, hundreds of passengers pass daily, which allows us to collect some feedback: "People are enjoying the terminal, this is all new."

"A very positive impact"

At the boarding piers, Marcelo Gallo prepares to make the trip to Coimbra. “I live here in Porto and teach in Coimbra twice a week. The conditions in which we took the bus, in Praça da Batalha, were horrible. Here, at least, we are in a safe place", he emphasizes, considering TIC "an important work for those who use the bus to go to work daily, and even to the city itself. It will be very good when the access to the railway lines is finished. In the Praça da Batalha there were no conditions, we were in the rain and in the cold. It was really bad, really really bad. The comfort is quite different. There are bathrooms, cafeteria, there is a direct passage to the subway", he adds.

Simone Pereira usually uses the terminal "every 10-15 days". “I think it has little signalling, but it is clear that improvements are being made. There are some delays too, but we understand that", she says. This passenger also notes that "comfort needs to improve a little". “The bathrooms, the cafeteria, it's all upstairs. And there is little information on the screens", she regrets.

Going through TIC for the first time, Fátima Paiva sees a “practical and functional” space. “[Building the terminal] was an excellent idea because it's a way to get buses and pollution out of the city centre. Here it is an asset, to join the buses to the subway and to the train. We can go anywhere”, she underlines.

“I used to take the transports to Lisbon, in Campo 24 de Agosto. This is much better, more open. The other one is very dark, it has no great conditions. It's good, because it's in the centre of the city, but due to pollution, it's much better to be on the outskirts of Porto. Being close to all the transports is excellent", says Fátima Paiva.

Eyes in the future

Young Regina and Rafael are also recent TIC users, heading for the future they are starting to build. “I only got into college this year, so I started taking transport here,” he explains, praising the “great conditions” that the space offers: “It's well organized. I think what differentiates the terminal the most is the organization, it is easily visible where we can take the bus.”

Looking ahead, the manager of STCP Serviços also sees encouraging prospects. "We have several requests, which are being analyzed, for new lines. By the end of the year we will see an exponential growth in demand for this terminal", she believes.

“Last week we had a debriefing [with the operators]. We have slight points to adjust, but they are all happy with this shift to TIC”, says Teresa Stanislau, concluding: "There are six different operators here, who have been increasing their offer from month to month. We have requests for about 50 more lines, from operators who are already here, but this is a slower process, because it involves other entities".