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juanrepublic:

Commuter Woes

You might have already heard it on social media or in the television. Following the series of problems encountered by the ever-efficient Metro Rail Transit (MRT), the Malacanang Palace, through one of its mouthpieces Presidential Communications Operations Office head Herminio “Sonny” Coloma Jr., advised commuters to try other modes of transportation.

“Yung MRT lang ba ang puwedeng sakyan doon sa mga rutang dinadaanan nito? Baka naman puwedeng matuklasan yung iba pang mga options," he said during a press briefing.

He particularly urged the public to try riding the passenger buses saying that those are not overloaded.

He must be delusional. Just like our omniscient Government officials who keep on suggesting things to the commuters and the public – as if they have conducted a scientific study. Or have tried those things for themselves.

But seriously, what are the other options for commuters in this everyday hell-hole called commuting in Metro Manila?

Okay, let’s take Secretary Coloma’s suggestion. Buses. Killer buses. Almost every week, bus accidents are reported on the news with numerous injuries and fatalities. (Don’t get me started on writing an article about these buses from hell and the death of my life inspirations, Tado Jimenez. But I might save it for the next day.)

How about the so-called King of the Road, the Pinoy jeepneys? Setting aside the sweltering heat and the smoke from other vehicles that you will inhale, this might be a perfect alternative for the congested train. But good defending your life against pickpockets, robbers, laglag barya gang, budol-budol gang, salisi gang, and other gangs on the Philippine National Police’s checklist.

Okay, the taxicabs. They’re safe – aside from occasional holdaper na taxi driver. They’re efficient – unless you encounter a driver who chooses his passenger. And they are worth your money – unless he is a kontratista and uses batingting.

How about bicycles? These past years have seen the boom of cyclists not just for sports and recreation but also for commuting purposes. But unless they put up safe bike lanes in every city, or unless some drivers learn how to share the road, I won’t risk my safety on the concrete jungles of the Metro.

I wasn’t supposed to write a thing about the statement of Secretary Coloma that provoked the netizens’ ire the other day. It wasn’t my problem. I have a comfortable, commuter’s life here in the province (I take the jeep or my mountain bike on my way to work). I am not one of those souls who brave the MRT everyday on their way to work. It’s Imperial Manila’s problem, I thought myself. But that mentality, in my opinion, is also a problem on this issue.

In order to understand a situation, one must experience it personally or one must have a mentality of filling oneself in the shoe of another person. Empathy, if you may call it. I had my time struggling to ride the MRT and LRT and exchanging breath and faces with fellow commuters like a when I was still working in Manila a few years ago. And that everyday experience was inferno-esque.

Some people may think Sonny Coloma and the Malacanang Palace are delusional. That they do not fully understand the situation because they haven’t experienced it personally.

There have been repeated calls for public officials to take public transport but, if my memory serves me right, only MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino heed the call.

This may sound delusional, just like our Government officials, but if we cannot force them to ride public transport, maybe we should bring our Government officials to an alternate universe where they can experience the agony of the commuters.

Maybe we need the help of Puma-Lei-Ar’s executive assistant, Ida.

Time Space Warp, Ngayon Din!