Every morning comes—the city wakes up with the same story—long lines for jeepneys, buses packed like sardines, trains breaking down, and traffic moving like a turtle, consuming everyone else's time. For millions of Filipinos, commuting is not just a journey to work and school—it's a battle for space, time, and dignity.
Public commuting in the Philippines is so bad that it has been described as “dehumanizing”—a daily struggle of waiting hours for a ride and getting stuck in endless traffic snarls. This reflects a serious transport supply shortage, worsened by an inefficient and fragmented public transport network. In Metro Manila alone, an average of 3.82 million vehicles travel the streets every day, about 20,000 more than the year before, making the region one of the most congested urban areas in the world. Motorists in the capital lose about 100 hours annually just sitting in rush-hour traffic—time that could have been spent with family, resting, or working productively.
You won't get tired at school or work—you'll first get tired of commuting.
Before you are even tired at school or work, you're already exhausted from commuting.
You have to fight just to get on the bus, jeepney, or train and get in. This is where you learn to endure fatigue, waiting, and being patient. An issue that is always mentioned in the news that is said to be "solved," but why can't thousands of Filipinos feel it? Is the solution really just paper—a press release rather than progress?
The terrible traffic in Metro Manila is not exaggerated. The 2023 TomTom Traffic Index reported that the metropolis ranked worst in the world for traffic congestion, with nearly 117 out of 240 annual driving hours spent stuck in gridlock. Fridays are the worst—especially between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., when the city becomes a sea of unmoving cars. Meanwhile, ordinary commuters still face the same old burdens: traffic jams that seem insurmountable, long lines at PUV stations, and unwalkable sidewalks. Public transportation remains unreliable, underfunded, and overcrowded, while those with private cars or helicopters glide above the chaos, untouched by the suffering below.
Look at our roads, and you will see what the government favors in our country. Wide lanes for private cars that only carry one or two passengers. Narrow, chaotic corners for jeepneys and buses that carry dozens. The pedestrian pushed to the side. Walking on broken sidewalks or squeezing against traffic. All this is not just random or concrete—it reflects the misplaced priorities of our government.
Every hour lost to traffic is gradually taken away from the hours that should be for family, for rest, and for our dignity. Parents leave home before the sunrise shines and return before a long sunset. Students are dozing off in class—not because they are lazy, but because they are tired of commuting before class even starts. Commuting is not just an inconvenience; it is also a theft. It silently steals our time, rest, energy, and joy.
Our roads seem not to be built for the people—they are for those in power. In recent years, transportation policies have favored useless public officials with tinted windows while those who will suffer in the heat remain in the crowded conditions. When public transportation is neglected, this is where the inequality that literally moves on wheels begins—those who can afford comfort space in the middle of traffic can escape the gridlock, while everyone else is stocked up and suffers.
We’ve heard the same promises: “solutions are coming,” “projects are underway,” “studies are ongoing.” But until people stop spending half their day in transit, words mean nothing. The real measure of progress isn’t how many highways we build, but how easily, safely, and fairly every Filipino can move through their own city.
We cannot keep normalizing this chaos. Every wasted hour is proof that governance has failed to move at the pace of its people. To fix traffic is not just to fix the roads—it’s to fix the priorities that built them. Until our leaders treat public transportation as a lifeline, not a burden, Metro Manila will keep standing still, and so will our progress.
