Looking Forward to the Day When Commuting Would Mean “Buwis Buhay” No More

Jenny is one of the millions who commutes daily from Manila to Quezon City and back.

“If you’re a daily commuter, you’d understand how dreadful the journey is—melting in heat or soaked in the rain while waiting for a ride,” Jenny said. It’s definitely “buwis buhay”, as Jenny described it.

Everyday she rides FX or cab or jeepney from her place in San Miguel, Quiapo to Ayala Hub in Diliman, Quezon City where she works as call center agent in a BPO company. Normally, travel time from Quiapo to Diliman, Quezon City, which is about 11 kilometers would only take 49 minutes. But Jenny said nowadays, it is not the case anymore.

From Quiapo, España, Quezon Avenue, to Diliman, if she is lucky enough, meaning on a not so heavy traffic days, would mean one and half hour travel time. There are days, Jenny said when it took her about two to three hours to reach her work place and another three hours to get home. “I’m too exhausted because of traffic, total six hours travel time is no joke,” Jenny lamented.

Daily fare is another issue, Jenny said. FX fare is about P60 pesos while cab fare is about P300. In a month, she shells out about P6,000.00 for her transportation needs an amount that could otherwise fund other basic needs of her family.

Jenny shared that when she heard on the news that the recent visit of President Rodrigo Duterte to Malaysia resulted in the signing of memorandum of understanding for a $1-billion Light Rail Transit system that will run from Diliman in Quezon City to Quiapo in Manila, she totally rejoiced. “If it comes to fruition, it will be a big help for us commuters,” Jenny said.

She said she understands that as of now it’s just an MOU and would still go through a normal process with the Department of Transportation before it gets approved, but it’s good that we have something to look forward to. “I feel better when I know that the government is doing something about the traffic problem and as well as the daily flight of commuters,” Jenny said. “I’m looking forward to the day when commuting would mean “buwis buhay” no more,” she added. (PIA-NCR/RJB/SDL)