TWO years ago, the silence of the streets was almost deafening. Only a few cars and people were moving about and the skylines of Metro Manila were nearly crystal clear.
The lockdowns forced almost everyone to stay put and people navigated through the pandemic using digital solutions. But with the continuous vaccination initiatives and the declining number of severe cases day after day, the roads are now back to normal.
Normal simply means congestion—with commuters suffering from long queues at terminals, exhausted even before coming to work and more worn out coming home.
Edsa at night has returned back to donning a 24-kilometer stream of red lights from stand-still cars, almost reminiscent of a giant Christmas tree.
Disconnect
“UNTIL today, we are seeing enormous queues during rush hours and rainy days in particular segments in our transport system, such as the Edsa busway and secondary routes serviced by buses and jeepneys,” infrastructure think tank Infrawatch Convener Terry Ridon said.
He added that the unprecedented expansion of motorcycle taxis “is a symptom of the state of our public mass transport system, as commuters opt for less safer yet more efficient alternative modes of transportation to ferry them to their destinations.”
Simply put, these are symptoms of a problem that the government must navigate to improve the state of the transport sector in the “new normal.”
“The transport sector, despite massive gains in infrastructure in the last few years, remains disconnected to its most important stakeholder—the commuting public,” Ridon said. “Had there been a clear focus on commuters, the public should have seen a more palpable change in the quality of their commutes.”
Too late?
PRIMO Morillo, the convener of commuter group The Passenger Forum (TPF), added that this should have been addressed even before the pandemic erupted in 2020.
“The public transportation system in the Philippines was in crisis even before the pandemic. The pandemic further worsened the situation as the government suspended all public transportation during the longest Covid 19-related lockdown in the world and used it as an opportunity to further force their jeepney modernization program without just transition,” he said.
This caused many jeepney drivers to seek other ways to financially support their families.
“When the government eventually allowed several jeepney franchises to ply routes, it was already too late as some drivers were already committed to other jobs. Some of those who heeded the government’s call eventually opted out again due to the rising cost of fuel that made them and their operators lose money,” Morillo explained.
“This is why commuters are still waiting too long to get a ride and why they choose to ride jampacked buses and jeepneys even with the continuing threat of Covid-19. They do not have a choice,” he added.
Understanding commuters
TRANSPORT executives should be able to get an end-to-end understanding of the daily travails of the ordinary commuter in order to create a pathway in which infrastructure and programs take in commuter interests at the core of government policy, Ridon said.
Morillo, for his part, said his group considers the lack of public transport options the top commuter concern right now.
“The lack of public utility vehicles, a limited train network, and an unimaginative transport department all contribute to this issue,” Morillo said.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr), Morillo added, should release its fleet rationalization plan “as soon as possible and allow commuter groups to scrutinize and suggest revisions and additions to it.”
“Our problems are obvious but it looks like our transport agencies continue to turn a blind eye to it. That, or they are not really concerned about the plight of Filipino commuters,” he said.
Some interim solutions that Ridon proposed to help the industry navigate through the challenges include the development of motorcycle taxis, the hastening of the construction of the subway, as well as the improvement of the Edsa Busway.
“At the interim, the government should reinstate the motorcycle taxi technical working group to provide a policy backbone for this emerging sector while the public awaits an actual law regulating the sector,” he said.
Ridon added that work on the Metro Manila subway should proceed unimpeded with right-of-way and permitting issues resolved without delay.
The government, he noted, must also improve the Edsa Busway infrastructure to provide safer facilities to commuters, notwithstanding deploying more buses during critical time periods.
“Active transport infrastructure should be improved, as much of the bike lanes being built were made to merely adjust to the current road network. Lastly, the government should determine which areas in the transport sector can be subjected to public-private partnerships, to help ease the burden to improve the public mass transport system at this time of limited fiscal space,” Ridon said.
Morillo added: “We hope the government will act in the soonest possible time. Because we cannot fully recover without addressing the public transport crisis, without solving the daily problems of our commuters.”
‘Accelerate and enlarge’
TRANSPORTATION Secretary Jaime Bautista admitted that the Philippines has a long way to go to provide commuters the transportation industry that they deserve.
“The Philippine transport industry still has a lot of room for improvement. We still need to improve transportation safety, comfort, accessibility and efficiency,” he said.
Bautista lamented that infrastructure investment is “still concentrated in a few urban areas; a lot more needs to be done.”
These include the expansion and upgrading of airports, the reduction of costs in transporting goods, extension of active mobility corridors, development of more rails, and the modernization of transport modes.
“The department intends to further accelerate and enlarge transport infrastructure investment,” he said.
Equitable distribution of growth
BAUTISTA said the industry faces immediate challenges in terms of high transport costs, which are driven by external global factors, as well as “poor road safety.”
“Besides these immediate challenges, as mentioned, the long-term challenges include improving transportation safety, comfort, accessibility and efficiency,” he said.
This, he said, means that the government needs to invest in transport infrastructure in all regions and provinces to promote more equitable economic growth.
“Doing so will also help reduce logistics costs, bringing down prices all consumers face in markets,” he said.
Bautista added that the industry must be prepared to welcome more domestic and international tourism, hence the government has to expand and improve the airports, as well as ensure that their operations and maintenance are considered “world-class.”
Furthermore, the department intends to enhance the quality and safety of active mobility users, giving commuters alternative means of travel which lower costs and promote healthy lifestyles, as “most Filipinos do not own cars.”
Bautista also pointed out that the department is integrating climate change adaptation and mitigation plans in its projects and programs to ensure that the industry is contributing to the larger battle against climate change.
“Further, as the country continues to commit and ensure social inclusion of the transport sector, and recognizing the possible impacts of crisis such as the pandemic to the vulnerable sector, the department shall also focus on how it can mainstream gender and accessibility considerations in its standards, programs and projects,” he said.
All these are geared towards improving the industry and contributing to the growth and recovery of the larger Philippine economy.
Fast-track economic recovery
IN order to fast-track economic recovery, Bautista and the department has implemented programs and projects that are anchored on the Marcos administration’s eight-point socioeconomic agenda.
“We hope to protect our purchasing power by ensuring unhampered delivery of goods and services to people, by implementing programs that aim to reduce transport and logistics costs such as provision of free rides and discounts, among others,” Bautista said.
He added that the department continues to enhance bureaucratic efficiency by bringing services closer to the citizens through more streamlined processes and digitization efforts.
“We also facilitate the timely release and utilization of resources to ensure immediate implementation of our programs and projects,” the transport chief said.
The agency also supports the national employment recovery campaign, considering the adverse impact of the pandemic to the labor force.
He said the DOTr targets to “enhance access of employment, livelihood and training opportunities, improve employability and productivity of workers and take advantage of the opportunities in the labor market under the new normal; and provide support to stakeholders.”
“Expectedly, our massive infrastructure projects will require sourcing manpower and employing more people to smoothly implement the projects. We also encourage private-sector participation in investing in various initiatives of the department, involving, among others, mainstreaming low-carbon transport, various operation and maintenance schemes, and promoting the development of transport industries,” Bautista said.
Active transport will also be a key ingredient to economic recovery, playing a “crucial role in the current administration’s eight-point socioeconomic agenda.”
“Its offer of reduced cost of transport is expected to contribute in protecting the purchasing power and mitigate socioeconomic scarring. Active transport has also been a key player in reducing the vulnerability of transport-users through social protection, earning a lot of attention at the peak of the pandemic. Further to this, its promotion can be a big step towards building sustainable communities for a greener economy, and in the long run, generate more green jobs,” Bautista said.
Image credits: Bernard Testa