Fuel Crisis Creates Commuter Crush in the Philippines

Commuting in the Philippines has become extremely chaotic. “You must protect yourself from getting stuck when you get on the train.” “We call it the sardine situation. It’s becoming unimaginable.” The war in Iran has created a global energy crisis that has more than doubled pump prices in the Philippines. This has forced people to abandon their cars and turn to public transportation such as trains and popular vehicles called jeepneys, which can usually hold up to 20 people. Many are trying to figure out how to navigate large crowds during rush hour while saving money. “Excuse me.” These passengers filmed their new challenging journey and shared it on social media. “I gave up the car. I use public transportation to get to and from work.” Stella Kim works as a project coordinator for a multinational company in Manila. The commute to work usually took about an hour and a half. But then gasoline prices started to increase. “It wasn’t worth it. It’s too expensive.” Kim now rides a motorcycle and rides a train and jeepney to commute. “I used to take a jeepney once a month, but now it’s like the cheapest option.” Kim said this new commute costs half the price of driving, but it adds an hour and a half to his trip. “It was 9.30pm when I got home, so I go home and the days end.” The rush of new travelers is making travel difficult for commuters like Stephen Emperado. “So the lines are much longer, wait times are less predictable, and you are competing for space.” He had already made a complicated journey to his university in Manila. “First I will take the jeepney to the MRT train station, and then I will transfer to another train.” Emperado said the large rush-hour crowds make it stressful. “It really takes a toll physically and of course mentally.” He said his only free time for reading and studying was commuting to work. “On my commute, all I can do is bring my book and I can’t even open it.” He also takes an extra shirt with him because bodies get crushed in the summer heat. Emperado found ways to avoid rush hour. “Because I really want to stay away from people, sometimes I stay at my friend’s house near school or come home late, from 9pm to 10pm.” To get her life back, Kim started looking for apartments closer to her office. “If I live close to this city, I can do other things. I’ll be closer to my co-workers. We can hang out more often.” Both Kim and Emperado can’t wait for things to get back to normal. “I wish this energy and fuel crisis would be solved.” “Filipinos are very resilient people. We are really trying to do our best despite the fuel crisis.”