Ateneo de Manila University

School of Social Sciences

SocSc13: The Economy, Society, and Sustainable Development

Urban Growth and Transport:

Assessing the Safety, Accessibility, and Reliability of New York City’s Public Transportation System

Cantonjos, Timothy Paul D.

Cura, Joyce Leila B.
Macalintal, Densel
Marco, Jaime Dominique
Pelayo, Larisse Mae Danielle
Reyes, Joanna Ysabella
Saludes, Christina

SocSc13 - ME - G
Mr. Philip Amadeus Libre

A.Y. 2021-2022
I. Introduction

A. Background of the Study

New York sees a surge in population, defies decline predictions

Spurred by a long economic boom, New York City's population grew significantly in the
decade up to 2020, as confirmed by the 2020 Census. This is in contrast to the Census Bureau’s
pre-census population estimates from the last few years which projected a significant dip in
population by the end of the decade, owing to net out-migration. The 629,000 increase between
2010 and 2020 nets an 8% increase, bringing the city’s population to more than 8.8 million, with
the stable upward trend in Figure 1 inarguably discrediting claims that the “Big Apple” has been
shrinking (Correal, 2021).

Figure 1. New York City Population through the Years

Public transport systems struggle to cope amidst population growth

Citizens and local politicians alike were seen to celebrate the growth of the Big Apple,
with previous New York City mayor Bill de Blasio attributing the growth to his administration’s
investment in prekindergarten programs, working families and safe streets. Contrary to this
claim, however, recent years saw the rise of violent crimes in the city – with incidents of hate
crimes, gun violence and other citywide crimes making headlines. In fact, major crimes in New
York City were recorded to have spiked nearly 60% in February 2022 compared to the same
month in 2021 (Tucker & Morales, 2022).

While all mentioned crimes stand to be equally alarming, news on transportation-related

crimes have been most prevalent recently, as 2021 records the most subway assaults in any year
since 1997. The New York Police Department has reported 461 felonious assaults, eight murders
and eight rapes in the city’s subway system last year alone – with all seeing an increase from
2020 (Abdel-Baqui, 2022). Just this January 2022, interim Mayor Eric Adams also acknowledged
that even he “didn’t feel entirely safe riding the rails,” following an incident of a woman being
pushed to death in front of a New York City subway train beneath Times Square.

Alongside rising crime rates, unprecedented breakdowns on subway systems – New

York’s main public transportation system – have also been reported. A power disruption that
lasted for a split second in August 2021 was reported to have affected more than 500 passengers
and 80 trains. About 300 people were stranded between rail stations, with some having to be
helped out by firefighters (Hughes, 2021). Over the past five years, subway delays were recorded
to have almost tripled, deteriorating on-time performance. Over the same time period, ridership
has also decreased, particularly on weekends, despite the city’s population growth.

Known as a central business district, New York heavily relies on its vast transit system
which has “enabled sustained growth, advanced health equity, and a smaller per capita carbon
footprint than any other big city in the United States.” However, New York’s increasing density,
alongside the declining reliability of subways and bus systems, pose serious threats to a city
existentially reliant on public transit. With over half of New Yorkers using public transit to get to
work, delays and disruptions can spillover across the city (OneNYC 2050, n. d.).

The goal to achieve efficient mobility supports the 9th and 11th SDGs by the UN
Amidst scarcity of resources and economic budgetary restrictions, population growth
continues to impact living conditions and resource allocation. Among the many areas affected by
increased populace and urban density is the state and efficiency of transportation systems. As
population rates continue to grow, the problem in safety and wellness in public spaces, including
local transportation systems, stands to be a hindrance to economic development. In addressing
this, sustainable development goals set by the United Nations on industry, innovation and
infrastructure, and on sustainable cities and communities are highlighted.

Since public transportation plays a crucial role in daily mobility and lifestyles, there is a
need to assess whether current systems are able to accommodate imminent population
increases – with safety, reliability and accessibility the core of inquiry. The need to investigate the
efficiency of public transportation can also be traced back to how infrastructure development
such as transport systems have long been seen as drivers of economic growth, with government
spending on transport infrastructures a variable in nations’ respective gross domestic products.

Hence, addressing the safety, accessibility, and reliability of the New York Transport
System specifically correspond to the following targets under SDG 9 and 11:

UN SDG Target Indicator

9 Industry, Innovation, Quality, reliable, sustainable Passenger and freight volumes,

and Infrastructure and resilient infrastructure by mode of transport

11 Sustainable Cities Access to safe, affordable, Proportion of population that

and Communities accessible and sustainable has convenient access to public
transport systems for all transport
Table 1. Specific Targets under SDG 9 and 11 addressed by improving the NY Transport System

A detailed description for each target addressed is as follows:

 SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
● 9.1 Develop quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including
regional and transborder infrastructure, to support economic development and
human well-being, with a focus on affordable and equitable access for all.
○ Indicator: Passenger and freight volumes, by mode of transport

SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

● 11.2 By 2030, provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport
systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with
special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children,
persons with disabilities and older persons
○ Indicator: Proportion of population that has convenient access to public
transport, by sex, age and persons with disabilities

B. Research Problem & Objectives

The paper aims to determine the impact of population growth on public transportation
in New York city. In assessing whether local public transport systems are able to accommodate
the needs of the city’s growing population, and subsequently aid citizens’ economic productivity,
the study specifically aims to answer the following questions:

1. Are the public transport systems of New York City safe?

2. Are the public transport systems of New York City accessible to citizens?
3. Are the public transport systems of New York City reliable?

C. Conceptual Framework

In order to analyze the issues faced by the New York transportation system amidst its
growing population, two theories of development will be utilized: (1) Solow-Swan Growth Model
and (2) Institutionalist Perspective. These frameworks are expected to contextualize New York’s
transportation phenomena by focusing on relative variables, and explain the status quo,
conflicts, and possible recommendations to the New York Transportation System.

Solow-Swan Growth Model

The Solow-Swan Growth Model is an exogenous model of economic growth that analyzes
changes in the level of output in an economy over time. As seen in Figure 2, the theory frames
long-run economic growth by focusing on three main variables: capital accumulation, labor or
population growth, and increases in productivity through technological progress. One of the key
insights highlighted by this model is that the economy will inevitably lead to a steady state
equilibrium since growth cannot be sustained in the long-run. This remains true even when other
exogenous variables such as savings rate, population growth rate, and depreciation rate are
modified; outcome variables are expected to only be temporary. As such, this model suggests
that the only way to induce long-run growth is by achieving sustained technological progress.
 Figure 2. Solow neoclassical growth model.

In understanding the trends and issues of the New York transportation system, insights
on capital investment and capital-augmenting technology will be highlighted. Amidst the growing
population, records on government and private capital investment and breakthroughs in
transportation technology and innovation will be enumerated. By looking at changes in output
from varying perspectives, recommendations based on empirical facts on infrastructure
investments and technological progress will be concluded.

Institutionalist Perspective
The institutionalist perspective describes the roles that formal and informal institutions
play in helping or exacerbating development issues in the context of the rules of economies and
varying human behavior. This perspective examines how certain institutions influence
development depending on its extractive or inclusive nature. Extractive institutions, also
described as “bad” institutions, inhibit development by enabling exploitation and limiting growth
to a few. On the other hand, inclusive institutions, described as “good” institutions, promote
equality by bestowing equal rights, entitlements, and access to opportunities. Overall, this
perspective implies that inclusive institutions of all types must be prioritized over extractive
institutions in order for development to flourish.

In the context of this paper, both formal and informal institutions will be examined in order
to determine their effects on the New York transportation system. Considering time progression
and population growth, it will be examined how various institutions have contributed to the
betterment or detriment of a safe, effective, and reliable transportation system in New York.
Recommendations in terms of promoting inclusive institutions and minimizing extractive
institutions will be concluded.

Scope and Limitations

This paper seeks to assess the impact of increasing population to the public
transportation system in New York City. For the purpose of this paper, public transportation in
New York will only pertain to subways, buses, and trains that charge fares, run on fixed routes,
and are available for public use.

Empirical data pertaining to the safety, reliability, and accessibility of the transportation
system will be collected and will be contextualized amidst the population changes from 2015
 until 2022. All data sets will be extracted from the NYC Open Data, and will therefore follow
varying sample profiles, methodology, and collection tools.

II. Discussion

A. Population Trends

General projections show an increase in population from 2010 to 2040 in New York City,
with the greatest increments happening mostly during 2010 - 2020 (Figure 3), while growth rates
decline from 2020 to 2040 (Figure 4). In line with the declining growth rates is the decline of the
share of school-age children in the total population (Figure 5), while the share of the 65+
population increased (Figure 6) throughout the decades. These findings follow the declining
world growth rates, albeit the continuous increase in world population (Gu et al., 2021).
Declining growth rates may be attributed to the further advancement of economies and
improvements in social, health, and environmental factors, although significant challenges
remain to fully eradicate these problems, especially for marginalized people.

Figure 3. New York City Population by Borough, 2010-2040

 Figure 4. New York City Population Growth Rates by Borough, 2010-2040

Figure 5. School-Age Population as a Percent of Total Population by Borough, 1950-2040

Figure 6. 65 and Over Population as a Percent of Total Population by Borough, 1950-2040

Concerning the urban population, the total number of homeless people living on the
streets in the major US cities observed decreased (Figure 7). Decreases in homeless population
count in Los Angeles, Seattle, Washington, and Boston were observed. However, Los Angeles still
recorded the highest population of homeless street people, even if this number already
decreased in the years 2010 to 2012. On the other hand, New York, San Francisco, Miami, and
Chicago recorded increases in their homeless street population, with Chicago’s numbers almost
doubling between 2011-2012. It highlights the need for programs to combat the prevalence of
homeless street people and develop solutions to improve their quality of life.
 Figure 7. Street Homeless Population of Major US Cities from 2010-2012

The increasing population, although preferable under a traditional Solow-Swan model

(as it means more labor), poses a risk to the limited resources, one of which is the limited
capacity of transportation lines in New York, such as its subway, airports, freight, and roads. Most
transportation lines are already operating at full capacity during peak hours (“Transportation,”
n.d.), with some people finding it hard to access immediate transportation during said hours.

Insufficient transportation systems have several negative effects, including reduced

economic productivity. For instance, homeless street people and the working class who heavily
rely on public transportation to get to their destinations will be affected by the insufficiencies of
the NYC transportation system (Ding et al., 2021). Thus, NYC officials conduct expansions of the
transit network and maintenance of the freight and road systems to combat the city’s
transportation problems. Apart from this, they also promote alternative transportation methods
(e.g. walking and cycling) in line with its sustainable development initiatives to decongest the
systems, lessen carbon footprint, and reduce costs (“Transportation,” n.d.). The succeeding
analysis shall further elaborate on the status of the major transportation systems in NYC.

B.1. NYC Transportation Trends: Safety

Transportation has been an integral part of human life. From using public transportation
to private transportation, it is important that the government keep its citizens safe from transit
related accidents, especially fatalities. Today, there are approximately three thousand (3000)
New Yorkers getting seriously injured and around two hundred (200) are killed due to traffic
crashes in New York (Vision Zero, 2022). Consequently, this has become the leading cause of
injury-related fatality for children below fourteen (14) and the second leader for senior citizens.

Additionally, it is not just traffic crashes that cause fatal accidents and serious injuries,
transit related crimes have also been on the rise over the past few years. In 2019, there were
4,714 transit complaints which decreased to 3,411 in 2020 and slowly rose to 3,918 in 2020
(Graham, 2022). More alarmingly, the crime rate in the subway has been increasing from 1 per
million in 2019, it rose to 1.48 per million in 2020, and 1.63 million in 2021. On a daily scale, that
is around five felonies per weekday.

New York City has a significantly lower traffic fatality rate compared to both its peer cities
in the U.S. and the average of the whole nation. However, it could be observed that this rate is
still higher with respect to other cities such as Hong Kong, London, and Stockholm. Additionally,
its traffic fatality and serious injuries rate is significantly higher than the aforementioned cities
with more than double than that of Stockholm. This highlights that while New York City is one of
the leading innovators in safe street design in the country, its rate still exceeds that of its peer
cities in the world (NYC DOT Strategic Plan, 2016).

Figure 8. Traffic Fatality and Injury Rates for Select Cities from 2014 - 2016 (in thousands)

B.2. NYC Transportation Trends: Reliability

Transportation has come a long way since the industrial revolution. From
horse-drawn carriages and wagons, and the revolutionary steam locomotive, we now have a
variety of cars, trains, boats, and even airplanes to take us to our destinations. These means of
transportation are now widely available to the public. And because of this, public transportation
has become an integral part of civilization. Major cities all over the world boast advanced
transportation systems such as Stockholm, and Tokyo. One such city is New York City, ranking
11th among global cities in terms of urban mobilization (Guse et al, 2022).

But while it is ranked 11th worldwide, it is actually ranked the 4th in the United States of
America because of its Subway system, which is the largest in the country (Remix, 2021). On an
average weekday, the subway supports 5.5 million riders with approximately 1.7 billion riders
each year. There are 472 subway stations with Times Square being the busiest. The city also has a
successful bus system with 2.2 million riders on average per weekday. Over 77% of residents
approve of the system, and over half of residents take public transit to commute, a higher
percentage than any other U.S. city.

Taken from the New York City Mobility Report of 2019, Figures 9, 10 and 11 show the
annual ridership of the Subway, Busses, and Taxi and for-hire registration vehicles respectively in
New York City, from 1990 to 2017. However, despite how much it is used, the NYC transportation
system has been slowly declining in efficiency.

Figure 9. NYC Subway Ridership (in millions)

Figure 10. NYC Bus Ridership (in millions)

Figure 11. NYC Taxi and For-Hire Registration Ridership (in thousands)

Figure 12 from NYC Open Data shows the traffic volume of each borough of NYC in 2010,
with an average of 28,066,765.80 across all boroughs. Figure 13 from NYC Open Data shows the
traffic volume of each borough of NYC in 2019 with an average of 50,341,024.60 across all
boroughs. This shows that in 9 years, there has been an average of 95.68% increase in traffic
volume across all boroughs. The amount of vehicles that travel in NYC has drastically increased.
 Figure 12. Traffic Volume in NYC by Borough in 2010

Figure 13. Traffic Volume in NYC by Borough in 2019

NYC DOT has been using MTA Bus Time data to measure the speeds of individual buses along
roadways since 2012. The bus speeds can be used as a proxy to paint a picture of general travel
speeds across the city. Figure 14 from the NYC Mobility Report of 2019 shows the average
city-wide bus speeds in the city. Citywide bus speeds declined marginally in 2017, down 0.7%
since 2016 and 3% since 2010. Additionally, Figure 15 from the NYC Mobility Report of 2019
shows the average traffic speed in NYC’s Central Business District. Travel speeds in the
Manhattan Central Business District (CBD) also saw a slight decline between 2016 and 2017, and
are down by 22% since 2010. Furthermore, this shows that Midtown Core speeds are
consistently 30% slower than CBD speeds.

Figure 14. Average City-wide bus speeds (in miles per hour).
 Figure 15. AverageTraffic Speed in Central Business District covering Manhattan and Midtown

Additionally, contributing to the congested roads, traffic density, and low speeds, is vehicle
breakdowns. Specifically, bus breakdowns in the City. Figure 16 shows that in between the years
2015 and 2022, there have been a total of 454,250 recorded cases of buses breaking down in the
city across all boroughs, with an average of 64,893 per year.

Figure 16. Recorded cases of bus breakdowns in NYC from 2015 to 2022.

B.3. NYC Transportation Trends: Accessibility

New York City’s population is mostly concentrated in the Manhattan borough with the
number of people reaching more than 100,000 per square mile. On the other hand, Staten Island has
the least population density among the five boroughs with only zero to less than 40,000 people per
square mile. Figure 17 illustrates New York City’s population density among the five boroughs. In
order to service the dense population, taxis, bus stops, and subway stations must be accessible and
sufficient in order to increase mobility around the city.

Figure 17. Population Density Map of New York in 2010. Under The Raedar: Population Density in
New York City.

Taxi
Figure 18 from NYC Open Data shows the taxi zones that encompasses the five boroughs
of New York namely: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. It can be
observed that all five boroughs are serviced by taxis, with taxi lines being more dense in the
Manhattan borough. This is only just due to Manhattan’s denser population than the other five
boroughs. Apart from servicing common New Yorkers, its Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC)
operates its famous yellow taxis and has a specific fleet for persons with disabilities and have
difficulty in mobility. The TLC has a fleet of wheelchair accessible yellow and green taxis that can
take people anywhere within the five boroughs, Westchester Country, Nassau Country, and the
three regional airports surrounding New York City (Accessible Dispatch, n.d). As of 2017, there
are a total of 2,600 wheelchair-accessible taxis serving New York, with 800 operating exclusively
in Upper Manhattan. These wheelchair accessible cabs can be hailed on the street, called
through their hotline, and reserved through their app (The Slatin Group, 2018). Despite the taxis
specifically designed to cater to wheelchair users, there are no extra costs compared to the
normal yellow taxis (Accessible Dispatch, n.d.)
 Figure 18. NYC Taxi Zones.

Bus
Another option for New Yorkers to get around is the Metropolitan Transportation
Authrority’s Bus system. As seen in Figure 19 below, all five boroughs of New York have sufficient
bus stops around every block. Synonymous with the taxi zones, bus stops are denser in the
Manhattan borough and the least dense in Staten Island. In terms of accessibility, city buses are
very accessible to the disabled and wheelchair users. Buses are equipped with either a
wheelchair ramp or a mechanical lift (Wheelchair accessible public transportation in New York
City, 2020). Despite buses being more accessible to the disabled, not all drivers know how to
operate the mechanical lifts and ramps in their buses. Despite training, bus operators are
untrained in operating the wheelchair equipment. Apart from this, New York City is also implored
to crackdown on cars blocking bus stops that disables operators using the wheelchair ramps. In
response to this problem, the MTA has vowed to prohibit cars blocking bus stops and study
newer models of wheelchair ramps and mechanical lifts that are easier to operate. This is a
pertinent problem, not only for wheelchair users, but also for all passengers that usually have to
wait for fifteen minutes, every time a wheelchair user embarks on a bus (Evelly, 2019).

Figure 19. Bus Stop Shelters in New York

As of 2018, 4,225 buses in the MTA’s fleet have ramps, and another 1,514 have
wheelchair lifts. Newer bus models are also equipped with technology that will let deaf and
hearing-impaired riders know announcements made by the bus operator (Evelly, 2019). Despite
these initiatives, the MTA is pressured to make sure that every bus stop has seating for people
who can’t stand for long periods of time, as well as addressing the problem of cars blocking bus
stops (Evelly, 2019). Another issue that the MTA needs to address is the difficulty of blind people
to navigate during bus rides due to inability to count the number of bus stops, unlike when using
the subway (McDonough, 2021).

Subway
Standing as the primary mode of transportation in the city, New York’s subway system
stands to be the most accessible in terms of location. As seen in Figure 20, it was reported that
most New Yorkers reside within a half mile from a subway station. Figure 21 likewise shows how
the system spans across the city, enabling high mobility and fast transport between boroughs.

Figure 20. Residents’ proximity to public transport systems. OneNYC 2050:

Efficient Mobility, Volume 8.
 Figure 21. NYC Subway Entrances (from NYC Open Data)

Despite its geographic coverage, however, the subway remains as the least preferred
mode of transportation for disabled people. This is because not all subway stations follow the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which aims to make all stations wheelchair accessible
(Wheelchair accessible public transportation in New York City, 2020). Despite having 468 subway
stations across the five boroughs, only 23% are equipped with elevators (Evelly, 2019). This is
because most subway stations were built before the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. For
instance in Manhattan, only 36 of the 147 stations are wheelchair accessible. In addition, a
station being wheelchair accessible may still have inaccessible platforms underground
(Wheelchair accessible public transportation in New York City, 2020). In response to this, the MTA
has allocated a large fraction of its funds to accessibility upgrades. Apart from this, the MTA also
hired its first chief accessibility officer, who is also a wheelchair user. During the pandemic, an
additional 12 stations became compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
However, elevator and escalator access are still pertinent issues in other stations, as seen in
Figure 22 below (McDonough, 2021).

Figure 22. Availability of Elevators in Subway Stations. OneNYC 2050: Efficient Mobility, Volume
8.
 III. Conclusion

There is a foreseen population increase in the coming decades, albeit accompanied by

declining growth rates. With this, the transportation system infrastructure in NYC will struggle to
accommodate the increase in capacity, especially if it relies on its existing measures to manage the
transportation system. It is clear that transportation remains an important factor in development as
it is a vehicle through which both goods and manpower is mobilized. The state of a city’s public
transportation system may either be helpful or detrimental to the urbanization of a location.
Theoretically, urbanization allows for the increase in economic productivity. However, without an
efficient public transportation system in place, the benefits of these will not be reaped.
From the discussion above, it is clear that NYC has invested substantially in public
transportation as evidenced by the accessibility of taxis, buses, and subway systems in the city. It can
be seen in the maps attached that transportation systems are spread across the city to support
mobility. Currently, the population of the city is estimated to be 8.8 million (ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW
YORK CITY, 2021). On an average weekday, 62.5%, 25%, and 11.44% of the population commute using
the subway systems, buses, and taxis, respectively. It is noted that over half of the residents take
public transit to commute. Thus, there is a need to further improve the operation of buses and taxis
to comfortably accommodate the population. Additionally, since subways are the most utilized form
of transportation, issues on safety, reliability, and accessibility should be addressed urgently for
citizens to be able to maximize the benefits of the existing transportation system.
While the Solow-Swan Growth model highlights the importance of infrastructure
development linked to increases in productivity through technological progress, it must be ensured
that these resources function well in order to serve its purpose. In this case, it is not sufficient to
simply develop transportation infrastructure. It is equally important to ensure that they are
supported by government interventions that guarantee safety, reliability, and accessibility.
From an institutionalist perspective, formal and informal institutions shape the way these
infrastructure work. On one hand, formal institutions such as the government ensure transportation
regulations and policies that affect its public transportation system. For example, the implementation
of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 mandated numerous wheelchair provisions in
transportation systems. However, some of these provisions were observed to be underutilized due to
the lack of skilled operators. Furthermore, since numerous transportation infrastructures were
developed prior to the passing of the act, these remain inaccessible to persons with disabilities even
after 32 years. Renovations should be conducted most especially in subway systems that are the
most utilized form of transportation. On the other hand, informal institutions such as public
perception on transport systems contribute to the utilization of these resources. In this regard,
education plays a crucial role in imbibing a sense of shared responsibility to citizens. For example,
skills training in operating wheelchair lifts may be explored to equip commuters in helping persons
with disabilities. Self-defense training may also minimize the risk of injury from
transportation-related crimes for the reason that despite having a low fatality rate with respect to
other cities in the country, New York City’s fatality and serious injury rate still fall behind peer cities.
Additionally, transit incidents, including that of crime related complaints, are still steadily rising which
compromises the safety of the public. Likewise, strictly implementing traffic regulations may be
helpful in minimizing traffic-related accidents. Note however that it is apparent that sociocultural
norms in urban areas are more transactional than relational. So, aforementioned recommendations
may be difficult to execute.
 In the Philippines, it may be recalled that the Duterte administration has put forth the Build,
Build, Build program as their legacy, prioritizing infrastructure development during their term.
However, the program has prioritized the development of expressways, bypass roads, and bridges
(Garcia et al., 2021). These initiatives mainly benefit those with private vehicles. In fact, in Metro
Manila, 70 percent of Filipinos rely on public transport, but only 22 percent of road space is allocated
for these vehicles (Peña & Lustan, 2021). To address such problems and inefficiencies, President
Duterte signed Executive Order 166 or the “Ten-Point Agenda on Economic Recovery”, which
includes the expansion of public transportation capacity. Transportation has been acknowledged as
an essential service that the majority of Filipinos rely on to access places of work, school, and other
basic services (Siy, 2022).
Applying the analyses from the review of NYC’s public transportation, even though cities in
the Philippines are not yet as urbanized, safety, reliability, and accessibility as metrics for public
transportation expansion should be considered in the planning phase. To make transportation
accessible, the government should allocate budget to public transportation infrastructure as data
suggest that the majority of the population are commuters. Additional measures to be taken are
including provisions for PWDs, pregnant women, and senior citizens. In the case of NYC for example,
it was observed that adjustments to make transport systems accessible for PWDs proved to be
difficult to execute. So, it would be advantageous to already include the aforementioned provisions
so upon the construction of new facilities. To make it safe, local officials should have preventive and
reactionary protocols in place to minimize injuries from crimes and accidents related to
transportation. For example, they may install security cameras, streetlights, or safety railings to
ensure the safety of the commuters. To make it reliable, public transportation should undergo
regular maintenance to avoid interruptions in scheduled trips. Additionally, reallocating road space to
public vehicles may be considered since the figures mentioned earlier are indicative of inequitable
road policies. Since investing in infrastructure developments is expensive, and the Philippines may
not have sufficient resources to pursue such an agenda, it may be cost-effective to look into investing
in active transport infrastructure. Aforementioned infrastructures may include bicycle lanes or
sidewalks for pedestrians. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of Filipinos have opted to walk or
bike to their workplace when public transportation such as buses and jeepneys were not available ().
Thus, it may be deduced that active transportation proves to be a low cost yet effective
transportation mode for Filipinos that may supplement other modes of public transportation.
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