It’s the sheer number of cars

The problem of traffic congestion exists in every major city in the world. Complaining may help us a little by allowing us to vent our frustrations. But I'd like a more balanced perspective and want to see the problem this way: Cebu is a victim of its own success, complicated by a host of several factors.

Cebu is the fastest-growing province in Central Visayas and one of the fastest-growing in the whole country. More than half of the population and the economic activity, however, are concentrated in Metro Cebu which comprises among others Cebu City, Mandaue City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Talisay City.

Three years ago, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) released a study that revealed that economic activities in Metro Cebu by 2050 will likely increase by 15 times its 2010 level. The GDP of Metro Cebu was also seen to rise by 8.3% annually between 2010 and 2020 before gradually settling down to 5.8% per year from 2030 to 2050.

The rise of GDP brings with it the rise of disposable income. Domestic income as well as foreign remittances enable lower-middle to middle-income households to either spend or save more. These allow banks to finance car purchases, as well as allow many people to afford the down payment and installment scheme charged by sellers.

If we were to base our estimates from the figures that the Land Transportation Office announced late last year, around 500 vehicles, and that includes motorcycles, are added to the streets of Cebu every day. One car retailer earlier estimated that over a hundred cars are sold every day in Cebu.

As early as 2002, JICA already warned about the impending traffic congestion if Metro's Cebu's road development failed to keep up with its rapid population and economic growth. About the only major development at that time was the 300-hectare South Road Properties in Cebu City which was completed in 2005. Elsewhere in Cebu, there were no major expansions happening in our public works and highways.

Despite urgent recommendations for the introduction of a mass rapid transit system such as the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), the national government under our centralized setup dilly-dallied just to, for one, accommodate some politics and vested interests here and there.

Meanwhile, with the worsening traffic condition in the metro, people are turning to the habal-habal or motorcycles-for-hire. In a hurry to beat the usual heavy traffic to school, the office, and meeting appointments, commuters are taking the habal-habal. There are now so many motorcycles hogging the road lanes, in every space between cars. Yet, as a person driving alone in a car that shamefully occupies a good portion of the road, who am I to complain?

In a study supported by the World Bank for an urban transport master plan in the city of Chittagong in Bangladesh, for example, it was revealed that public buses carry 75% passengers but occupy only 17% of the road. Private cars, on the other hand, carry only 5% passengers but occupy 29% of the road. I agree, private cars are a huge waste of road space.

We're looking forward to the modern bus-jeeps (beep) that will soon ply major routes in Cebu City, hopefully, this month. We also await the implementation of Cebu City's planned Integrated Smart Traffic Signaling system. Despite major delays, we also hope for the swift realization of a mass transport system starting with the BRT. For now, we just have to adapt to how the commuter market is reacting to our worsening traffic situation – the habal-habal solution.

I therefore support the amendment of the Land Transportation and Traffic Code (RA 4136) in order to repeal the provision that excludes the registration of motorcycles as vehicles-for-hire. We must allow motorcycles-for-hire but regulate their operation in order to professionalize the service. The motorcycle ride-hailing service Angkas, for example, has proven to be a reliable and safe transportation service to commuters.

The LTO and LTFRB have better things to do than apprehending habal-habal drivers who are simply catering to the urgent demand of commuters for a cheaper and faster ride. The government's apparatus of control can never effectively implement a law in the now archaic form than it was originally intended. The norms and experiences of commuters have totally changed, and so must our transportation and traffic law.