Modes of Public Transport in Manila, Philippines
Created | Updated Jun 7, 2002
The streets of Manila, Philippines, are always aswarm with people and vehicles of all kinds, moving along a serpentine maze of asphalt arteries and other byways. Whether in the performance of the day's business or in the pursuit of less mundane preoccupations like transporting well-heeled glitterati to various palaces of pleasure, living in Manila requires a certain knowledge of vehicles to be found in its streets.
While rickshaws and oxcarts are not in evidence, (actually, there are varieties that faintly resemble them) there are certain conveyances unique to Filipino streets. Some are listed here:
Tricycles, Pedicabs, Jeepneys, FX Vans, Kalesas, and Taxicabs
Tricycles
Motorcycles with distinctive sidecars. They can seat two in the sidecar and one other riding shotgun with the driver. Amazingly maneuverable in rutted and congested back roads, tricycles go for a contract price of eight pesos per trip but the amount may be split among several passengers going the same way.
Pedicabs
Pedicabs are bicycles with sidecars. Man-powered vehicles have become rare in Manila, though underpowered automobiles will suddenly become man-powered when they stall. Pedicabs are used mainly for soft drink deliveries and park recreation (you rent it; you're on your own.) Safety is your responsibility. Speeding is not encouraged. The author once had one turn turtle on him and ended up caged under the sidecar like a zoo attraction.
Jeepneys
The ubiquitous Jeepney is the so-called King of the Road in the Philippines. They are everywhere: in the cities, towns, hamlets, even in mountains, where the simplest suggestion of a path exists. Adapted from army jeeps at the end of the Second World War, they sit higher and are longer to accommodate more passengers.
Jeepneys, before the Metro Rail Transport System was inaugurated, hauled most of Manila's commuters.
You can't miss them. They are garishly decorated, with pewter stallions on the hood, streamers and flags on the antennae, covered in imaginative if unskilled art, every unpainted surface festooned by gleaming chrome. The interior and windshield are covered with so many stickers, ornaments, and God Bless Our Kids yarnwork; visibility is reduced to that of a tank driver's. They don't stop at visual decorations. Special horn sounds range from gay manic laughter to wolf whistles, even classical music, for cultural wannabes.
Jeeps can accommodate eighteen to twenty people, with two up front with the driver and the rest seated in upholstered benches, each facing the other. Fully loaded this way, up to four more people can still ride by clinging to the bars at the rear exit, with their back ends at the mercy of trailing vehicles.
The jeep designers (unh-huh) seem to have chosen utility over comfort. And safety. There are no seat belts on board. Passengers must steady themselves with the overhead running bars or just cling onto any piece of metalwork. There are virtually no accommodations for inclement weather. At best, a plastic tarp over the running side windows, which flap in the wind and make a racket if not fastened down. Even in the best weather, it is not exactly comfortable, packed in with eighteen other people elbow-to-elbow and nose-to-nose in the rear passenger area.
Standard Jeep fare is four pesos, which supports the driver and auxiliary positions, such as hawkers, who guide boarders to their rides, and assistants, who sit in front, collect and make change for the fares that are passed over from the back.
Jeeps run regular routes, covering the city in interlocking and redundant networks. The scope of their route is told by the names painted down the sides, which list the general area and narrows down to particular stops, using movie theaters, drugstores, and housing projects as landmarks. This system is often confusing, even for natives. If you're not sure where it's going, don't hesitate to ask, or you'll be calling home with cows lowing in the background.
While there are regular jeep and tricycle stations at the extreme ends of their routes, you can hail them anywhere; regular stops do not apply. This goes the same for crossing anytime, anywhere. Just don't get caught.
FX Vans
Tamaraw FXs are the link between cabs and jeeps. Vans with seating space in front, behind, and in two benches in back, they are more plush than jeeps and air-conditioned. They run similar routes as jeeps; fare runs from ten to twenty pesos.
There are hazards. An entire party of noisy transvestites may board the FX with you and you'll spend the entire trip frozen and fearing for your sex.
Kalesas
Kalesas, horse-drawn carriages, used to be the only form of transport in Manila, but are now unknown in most parts except in older sections, like Chinatown. Not a swift ride, it is no competition to motorized cars and buses, which are faster and more durable in the event of a crash.
They're around mostly for ambience, for the feel and the perspective they give. People with an old-fashioned bent still prefer them and fare runs from thirty pesos up.
One hazard specific to the horse-drawn carriage is when the horse's tail whisks the waste bag. It literally flies.
Taxicabs
Taxis are the most comfortable, private, and expensive mode of public transport in the Philippines. They are generally indistinguishable from taxis in the U.S, except that like most Filipino vehicles, they're decorated with all sorts of trinkets, with rosaries and leaflets hanging from the rear view mirror, bobbing-headed dogs, king's crown air fresheners, and multiple religious icons. Fare is from forty up, and there's no shortage of them anywhere in town. One other thing about Filipino cabs: None of the drivers know to use the overhead lights, and are often lit when occupied and unlit when unoccupied. When hailing them, just hope for the best.
And those are the vehicles you will find in the Philippines. Colorful, loud, and downright cantankerous, they will still get you where you need to go with a modicum of comfort and safety.
