Not just quantity, but quality, of motoring causes jams

MANILA, Philippines–Since late last year, motorists in the Philippines, particularly those in Mega Manila, had been warned by concerned citizens, and even by the government, to brace for an influx of new motor vehicles—by the hundred thousands—implying that with such an influx occurring in just one year, the public should expect worse traffic congestion, especially in urban areas.

 

But are 300,000 new vehicles the sole factor at play in the frequency and duration of traffic jams? Before you shout “yes, of course!” consider this eye-opening fact. Google “motor vehicle population” and you’ll see a list of countries that enumerate their vehicle population per capita (Note: the ranking used multiple sources including a World Bank data in a Wikipedia info). Surprisingly, the Philippines ranks a lowly 145th among the 192 in the list. Meanwhile, the World Bank data, dated 2010, showed the Philippines only counts 30 motor vehicles (cars, buses, and freight vehicles, but excluding two-wheeled motorbikes) per 1,000 inhabitants.

 

In comparison, the small country of San Marino topped the Wikipedia list at 1,263 motor vehicles per 1,000 population, while the United States (ranked fourth in the said list) has 809 motor vehicles (in WB 2011 data: 786); Japan 588 motor vehicles (good enough for 17th place), and neighbor Thailand 206 motor vehicles, ranking it 70th (WB data shows: 172).

 

Inquirer Motoring asked auto industry heads if they agreed with the popular view that the sheer volume of vehicles on the road would cause more massive traffic jams in the nation’s capital, and what would be other factors at play here.

 

“Traffic congestion is a common concern among emerging economies, like the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia. We can learn from the experiences of other Asian cities, like Taipei. Taipei was able to reduce traffic congestion by almost 20 percent by automating transactions with the city government. Building more roads is not the only solution. The innovative use of technology and modifying driver, as well as passenger and pedestrian, behavior through advocacy would significantly help reduce road congestion,” said Fe Perez Agudo, Association of Vehicle Importers and Distributors (Avid) president and Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. president and CEO.

 

Lawyer Alberto Arcilla, Volvo Philippines president and The Covenant Car Company Inc. president and managing director, echoed that view: “The increasing need for transportation and mobility is expected from a growing population and a growing economy like the Philippines. Road traffic will be a natural occurrence more so in a situation where commercial activity is still centralized in certain cities and business districts.”

 

“The increased volume of vehicles is an expected result of the need for mobility. Vehicles serve the need for the populace to be mobile,” Arcilla said.

 

“The primary task at hand is to match the road infrastructure with the need for transportation and mobility. A good mix of the availability of an effective and safe public transport system and a strict implementation of policies relating to traffic management and driver discipline will help in addressing the traffic condition,” Arcilla added.

 

Carpooling incentives

 

John Philip Orbeta, president of Volkswagen Philippines, said that there are several factors at play in the road traffic equation.

 

“While the vehicle population and the road network are the major factors, traffic management and driver discipline/education can help alleviate the problem. Take the case of Edsa, the major cause of congestion in Metro Manila. Most of the bottleneck areas are found where buses jockey for position to get passengers and refuse to orderly line up to allow the free flow of other vehicles. [The Metro Manila Development Authority] needs a strong political will to sort this out,” Orbeta said.

 

“Furthermore, incentives to promote carpooling such as express lanes for private vehicles with four passengers or more will take out some of the private vehicles off the road. But most importantly, the mass transport system of MRT and LRT must be programmed to ferry more passengers at faster intervals by increasing the speed and the number of wagons; this will in turn reduce the number of buses along Edsa by natural attrition. This, however, will depend much on the rehabilitation program,” Orbeta added.

 

“I do not think that sheer volume of vehicles alone is causing the massive traffic jams that all of us get to experience frequently. It’s the combination of numerous factors,” CATS chair Greg Yu quipped.

 

Yu cited what he considers the key factors in contributing to traffic jams, in order of importance:

 

• Driver behavior. Traffic rules are often not followed. Many drivers have a “me first” mentality, which leads to bottlenecks, accidents, and scuffles. Bus drivers do not follow rules and just stop anywhere, blocking the smooth flow of traffic.

 

• Lack of and poor planning of roads and related infrastructure.

 

• Lack of mass transit options. Poor planning and maintenance of MRT and LRT.

 

• Lack of coordination and political will on the part of local and national government.

 

No cure-all solution

 

“Given the different reasons causing jams, there is no cure-all solution. Ideally, the DOTC should be the lead agency to come up with a plan and implement it. The department should be given the mandate to lead and ‘dictate’ on the other agencies and government units so that what needs to be done gets done. But given the current situation and the impending end of this administration, I think the solution will have to wait until the next administration,” Yu said.

 

Daniel M. Isla, Lexus Manila president, said: “There are things we have to live with at the moment. Our road network is not designed to handle the growth in vehicle sales. Historically, our roads considered only the use of kalesas and small vehicles, thus, they are narrow. Our road network is not designed properly, and it will take a lot of political will to remove road blocks and to remove residential and business establishments encroaching on public roads.”

 

Isla added that homes and commercial units have limited parking areas, and so resort to using the streets to park their vehicles.

 

“Driver education and discipline is also imperative. We also need knowledgeable traffic managers who have both the will and skill to organize vehicular movements,” Isla said.

 

“I suppose this is the price of economic growth. We have more vehicles than what our roads can take. However, if the government and the public in general, come to terms with the will and the discipline to make things better, we will find hope for improvement. It will take time, and yes, it can get worse before it becomes better. Will it happen in my lifetime? Maybe not, but I certainly hope so,” Isla said.

 

Lawyer Rommel Gutierrez, Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines president and Toyota Motor Philippines’ first vice president, said: “The growing number of car sales can be attributed to the consumers’ increased demand for easier transportation and their buying power. With the surge of vehicle sales, better infrastructure must also advance with it in order to provide better and more roads to drive on for ease of traffic. Moreover, we should also be reminded that driver discipline and a more systematic process of rules and regulations on the road are always important points to further smoothen traffic flow in the Philippines.”