Transportation Issues in the Philippines: Metro Manila
Metro Manila, the bustling capital of the Philippines, is facing an unprecedented level of urban growth in Southeast Asia. To discuss transportation issues in the Philippines, this essay aims to delve specifically on the traffic and transportation problems plaguing Metro Manila. This commentary seeks to explore the root causes, possible solutions, and the effects of urbanization and population growth on Manila's traffic. To understand the issues thoroughly, we must first examine the population, which grew significantly after World War II, with the latest count reaching around 11.8 million in Metro Manila alone as of 2010. The sheer size of the population affects the movement of people and is intricately linked to transportation and traffic problems in Manila. Some of the most prominent causes of traffic are insufficient road infrastructure, the increase in car ownership, and the growing demands for public transport services. These factors are further examined to understand how they contribute to the transportation issues in the Philippines and what solutions can be implemented to alleviate the burden of traffic on Manila's residents and economy.
The first main concern is insufficient roads, the roads in Manila are not big enough to accommodate the density of vehicles. This means that the roads are not suitable to fit all the cars and other vehicles in Manila. The density of roads to square kilometre and roads per resident is low in Manila coming in at 4.62 km2 for road density and 0.38 m per person it it simply among the lowest in terms of movement and transportation among some of the countries.. The roads are dominated by private cars and trucks. A great example of this congestion is seen on the Philippine highway “EDSA” this high way is a major route that connects the north and south part of the metropolitan area, this highway is essential for a spatial structuration in Manila and other regions around it. However the problem is many issues arise within this highway such as “too many transport vehicles, unreliable services and even unpredictable frequency” this would mean that the congestion that occurs is because of such overcrowding within these roads. There are solutions that can be done to address these problems. For instance re-assigning specific routes for certain kinds of vehicles, in the Philippines there are many forms of transportation from buses, jeepneys, tricycles and cars. One way of addressing this is to assign these vehicles to specific routes so that only that specific vehicle is permitted to be on that road, this will decrease the amount of congestion on the roads. In addition to designated routes another fix is to develop more rail transit, manila lacks railway transit as they only have three lines that run and that train is limited to a small part of an island which can only carry about 1.1 million people in capacity. The addition of newer railways would mean less people would be dependant on buses, Jeepneys and cars in order to get to the destination that they needed to get too. As it stands however most people have to get by through enduring through overcrowded trains or wait in traffic jams. Furthermore development of new roads is not feasible as it would cause more traffic jams than reduce it and to an area that is prone to natural disasters it is not the safest option. Instead however improving railways with new lines and overall adding a much larger system that could cover the metropolitan area of Manila would be more beneficial to addressing the insufficient roads and would lead to less time consumed just on commuting which would also benefit those who live in farther regions to make difficult sacrifices in order to arrive to work on time or to get home early. So therefore if this solution is taken into account the overall function of Metro Manila would increase significantly.
The second point of concern is the increase in car ownership, this means that more cars are being bought and put out on the roads. 40% of all registered vehicles in the Philippines are in manila which means that 1.1 million of these vehicles are privately-owned cars or utility vehicles. The increase in car ownership is important as in the Philippines, these vehicles are relied on by many. In order to understand the increase in car ownership the factors must be looked at, as it plays a role in the ownership of a car. The three factors are household characteristics, relative location and the cost and service level. To be more in depth household characteristics may involve the income, the people who live their and their age group within that household. The relative location however is based on the area, as more cars will be present in an urban area as to a rural area. As the population in Manila grows many families will either have to get a car or get by through public transit, this is a growing issue as either way it causes congestion and affects the overall flow and movement that occurs in Manila. It is more likely that the younger households are to own a car. A solution to this growing increase is the following, it is likely that these households have other family members who own cars, so with that in mind these families can carpool and even share a ride all together. Though this solution may not always work it is a feasible option. In addition to carpools another possible solution is to reduce or even offer cheaper fares for instance a metro pass or a family pass which would benefit both the people and lessen the amount of cars being put on the road.
The third factor of traffic is the demand for public transport services. The services are mainly provided by buses, Jeepneys, taxis and tricycles many of these services are depended on by many commuters in Manila, the problem however is the quality of these services has decreased due to the traffic congestion and as well as the competition of these private companies in the transportation industry. Further more there are about 104 bus companies competing among the major routes among Manila which means the congestion and overcrowding is mainly because of these buses. About 60% of these metro buses link within metropolitan Manila, which can be evident to understand that most of Metro Manila runs on public transport services. However this is one of the major causes of such congestion. The solutions to such congestion of buses are the following, first a designated bus stop, this is done through lettering, A buses can only stop at A stops, B Buses at B stops and so on. The purpose of doing this to limit the amount of stops these buses do that affect other buses and may cause more congestion as it is. This solution is a way of also organizing the movement of people in more efficient way. Furthermore the removal of all buses On “EDSA” which is their major route and the major route for many transportation services and instead creating terminals within the metropolitan area of Manila. The removal of these buses on EDSA would make congestion in Metro Manila more clear and would positively impact the flow of traffic. These solutions however will not work overnight but given some time can alter the way the system of transportation services work in Manila, so therefore given proper timing and adjustments can make these solutions work.
Metro Manila’s urbanization is evident in terms of its growth in population and the movement it has within its metropolitan area. The movement of such high density in people is the cause for traffic and congestion. Insufficient roads in Manila is something that needs to be worked on in order to maintain and control the traffic congestion, the growth in population will only lead to more increase in car ownership and the demand for public services. The growth in car ownership will affect the flow and movement as more cars on the roads which are lacking will cause further problems in the future for Manila. The high demand for public transportation services will affect the population as well, as this demand cannot sustain the whole entirety of Manila. Addressing these issues and providing solutions can indeed solve the traffic problem in Manila. It will however take time and a lot of investment so the key to fixing these problems is to prioritize them and the rest will eventually follow. The traffic in Manila is something that needs to be taken care of as soon as possible in order for urban development to grow properly and to be sustained effectively.
