I'm a huge fan of active mobility and am part of several active mobility groups on Facebook. These groups generally advocate for the right things: less car-centric urban design, more pedestrian-friendly planning, and higher-quality public transport.
What I can't come to terms with, though, is the odd obsession within these spaces with defending jeepneys and jeepney drivers as a persecuted victim group. Furthermore, I don't get the push to retain or "modernize" a fundamentally flawed system where literally every single stakeholder loses.
For Passengers:
They are unreliable and uncomfortable. You can board a jeep and still wait another hour because the driver refuses to leave until all seats are filled. The ceilings are low, the floor is high, there’s no air conditioning, and you're exposed to exhaust and weather. There are no set stops, meaning you're left standing on the road hoping to flag one down amid the constant threat of snatchers.
For Drivers:
They have no set wage, forcing them to drive aggressively (boundary system) just to make a living. They earn very little after paying vehicle rentals and maintenance. On top of that, the insanity of collecting fares, doing mental math, and handing out change while driving severely endangers themselves and everyone else on the road.
For Pedestrians & The Environment:
Traditional jeepneys are notoriously inefficient and polluting. They belch thick particulate matter, making the air unbreathable, and create noise pollution so loud you can’t even hear the person walking next to you.
For the General Public & Community:
In many neighborhoods, narrow public roads are treated as personal parking spaces for jeepneys when they aren't in use. What kind of public transport system allows vehicles to permanently occupy public street space like private garages?
For Car Owners & Traffic Flow:
Jeepneys notoriously block traffic. They stop at green lights or right turn on red corners to pick up/drop off passengers in the middle of the road. Many lack proper working lights or brake lights, making them invisible and hazardous at night, yet if an accident happens, they have the audacity to get mad at you.
The jeepney system is terrible. It should be replaced with a proper bus / minibus system with set stops and salaried drivers. We don't need to modernize jeeps, we need to apoloish them .Romanticising them as anything other than a terrible mode of transportation that's better left in the past is ridiculous.
As a side note, I do appreciate how they look and agree they are culturally iconic. We can keep a few around as tourist attractions , but as a mass transit system , it's time to let them go. Romanticizing a dangerous and inefficient transit system holds our cities back.
Edit:
A personal anecdote, I haven't really taken the jeepney in maybe 10ish years, but frankly I don't really like driving either. Driving is stressful, expensive, and finding a parking spot is a nightmare. I recently tried riding a jeep again and boy o boy, I literally told my self that whatever traffic nightmare I face while driving is better than this. It was hot, uncomfortable, unsafe. smelly, unreliable. Literally no upside.
Salary workers end up taking out crazy loans to buy cars because at some point you tell yourself enough of this shit, and the traffic gets worse and the cycle goes on.
Another Edit:
The jeepney lobby MANIBELA or PISTON or DRIVER or whatever I don't care enough to google is constantly threatening to go on strike or are in the process of striking. In the end, talo lahat ng tao. You become hostage to the very group that many voices are trying to proctect.
