COURSE OUTLINE

Reference: CHED Memorandum Order No. 92 Series

Philippine Transportation
System
Prepared by:
Engr. Alyzza Elaine B. Ojeda
Lecturer I
CE 416 – Principles of Transportation Engineering
 BACKGROUND
• The Philippines, a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is an archipelagic country consisting
of more than 7,100 islands. With a total land area of about 300,000 sq. km, it has 81 provinces, 136 cities, and
1,494 municipalities (NSCB 2007). Metro Manila is the seat of the government and the primary center of
business and trade. Other urban centers include the major cities of Cebu and Davao. The population of the
Philippines is about 80 million, with a growth rate of 2.2 percent per annum. The population density stands at
227 persons/sq. km.
• Metro Manila comprises sixteen cities and one municipality (NSCB 2007). Its land area is 636 sq. km, and it
has a population of 10.4 million. This implies that about 14 percent of the country’s population is concentrated
in only 0.3 percent of the country’s land area. Its population density is about 16,000 persons/sq. km, one of the
highest in Southeast Asia. The population growth rate is about 3 percent, higher than the national average
(ALMEC Corp. 1999).
Road Transport Network

Some 80% of domestic passenger traffic and 60% of freight traffic currently use the road,
and 75% of government expenditures on transport infrastructure goes to road systems (Abueva
2004).
The Philippines has a total road length of about 161,000 km, with an average road density of
0.53 km/sq. km or 2.35 km per 1,000 people. Philippine roads are mostly made of concrete
pavement. Due to heavy, overloaded trucks, pavements are often damaged, a factor that
contributes to traffic accidents. Due to a long rainy season, floods occur throughout the
Philippines, Floodwaters often cause damage to road pavements due to inadequate drainage.
There are about 11,500 bridges in the national network (measuring about 335,500 lineal meters),
of which 1,700 bridges are temporary (DPWH 2004).
Public Transportation
The mode of public transportation in Metro Manila is predominantly road-based,
consisting largely of jeepneys and buses for primary and secondary routes, and motorized
tricycles and pedicabs for feeder routes. There are about 330 bus routes and 600 jeepney
routes. These routes include those serving the adjoining areas of Metro Manila. The
jeepneys cover more than 610 km of roads while buses operate mainly on about 350km of
roads (ALMEC Corp 1999).
During rush hours, the inadequate provision of public transportation becomes apparent.
Many commuters can be seen standing on the carriageway while waiting for buses and
jeepneys. Passengers clinging to anything at the back of jeepneys are a common sight.
Traffic Management

Traffic control devices such as traffic

signs and markings generally follow the
international standard, the Philippines
being a signatory to the Vienna
Convention in 1968. However, many of
the signs installed conform neither to
color nor shape as provided for in the
standard. The number of traffic signs
installed is generally insufficient. In
highly urbanized areas, these signs can
hardly be recognized, much less read, as
they compete with giant billboards in
terms of visibility and craftsmanship.
Traffic Management
Traffic signals are commonly installed at major
intersections in many cities and towns in the
Philippines although the number is still inadequate.
Oftentimes, these signals do not provide display phase
exclusive for pedestrians. In Metro Manila, there is a
growing concern about the safety of pedestrians due to
the closure of intersections and with the U-turn slot
scheme replacing the control of traffic signals.
Pedestrians have practically no opportunity to cross
the road because of the “uninterrupted” flow of traffic.
Without traffic signals controlling the traffic flow at
intersections, driving has become riskier because of
frequent swerving/weaving. There is an urgent need to
evaluate the effectiveness of the scheme, which has
the sole purpose of improving speed along the arterials
without consideration of safety.
Pedestrian Facilities
Sidewalks are in relatively good
condition; however, many obstructions
can be found on them such as illegal
vendors, electrical posts, police outpost,
etc. With the sidewalk occupied,
pedestrians have to walk on the
carriageway. There are still very few
overhead pedestrian bridges even in Metro
Manila and at places where these have
been constructed, pedestrians still prefer
to risk their lives or limbs by crossing the
road at grade level. Moreover, pedestrian
overpasses are often inaccessible to the
elderly and the handicapped.
 Vehicle Registration

The registration of vehicles in the Philippines is

handled by the Land Transportation Office (LTO),
a line agency of the Department Transportation
and Communication (DOTC). The number of
utility vehicles or jeepneys has a share of 37
percent. The number of motorcycles has increased
tremendously in the last three years due to the
influx of cheaper models into the country. It
reached the 1.5 million mark in 2002. However,
this number accounts for both the motorcycles
(MCs) for private use and tricycles (TCs) for
public transport use. There is therefore a need to
separate the categories since they serve
completely different purposes.
 Vehicle Registration

About 40% of the total numbers of

vehicles are registered in Metro Manila.

Motor vehicles are classified as follows:

 Private vehicles
 For hire vehicles
 Official/Government Vehicles
 Diplomatic Vehicles
 • Motor vehicle owners are required to
obtain insurance covering third-party
liabilities. The minimum insurance to

Insurance be paid to victims of traffic accidents

(fatal) was P50, 000 in 2002.
• The Insurance Surely Association of
the Philippines under the Office of the
Insurance Commissioner accredited
112 insurance companies all over the
Philippines by 2002. It regulates the
industry to prevent the proliferation of
fly-by-night insurance companies.
 Driving License
The issuing procedure of driving license in
provided for under Republic Act (RA)
4136.

The LTO has the full responsibility for

issuance of driving licenses. There are
three types of driving licenses:
 Student driver’s permit
 Nonprofessional driver’s license
 Professional driver’s license
a. Student driver’s permit
The applicant must be at least sixteen years old and must be physically and mentally fit to
operate a motor vehicle. He or she must be able to read and write in Filipino or English.

b. Nonprofessional driver’s license

New applicant must be at least seventeen years old and must be a holder of a valid student
permit for at least one month. He or she must be physically and mentally fit to operate a motor
vehicle and must not be a drug user or an alcoholic.

c. Professional driver’s license

New applicant for professional driver’s license must be at least eighteen years old and is
required to submit a valid nonprofessional driver’s license or a valid student driver’s permit
that is used for at least five months. He or she must not be a drug user or an alcoholic. The
requirement of having a medical examination and drug test was introduced only very recently.
Traffic Engineering in the
Philippines
The traffic engineering practice in the
Philippines is still new. Most intersections
were previously controlled by traffic police
officers or by manually operated traffic
signals. Outside Metro Manila, manually
operated semaphore signals displaying
STOP or GO message were installed on top
of police outposts located at the center of the
intersection.
Traffic Engineering in the
Philippines
In 1977, the Traffic Engineering and
Management (TEAM) Project first
implemented an area traffic control system in
Metro Manila. It was almost at the same
period when the Traffic Control Center, later
renamed as the Traffic Engineering Center
(TEC), was established. The center was
responsible for the implementation of various
traffic engineering and management measures
such as traffic signalization, geometric
improvement of intersections, etc.
Traffic Engineering in the
Philippines
In 1976, the Transport Training Center (TTC) was
established in the University of the Philippines with
assistance from Japan through the Japan
International Cooperation Agency (JICA). TTC
started its training program in 1978 in the fields of
traffic engineering, transportation planning, and
traffic management for traffic law enforcers. TTC
was renamed as the National Center for
Transportation Studies and became a regular unit of
UP Diliman in 1993, with research and support to
graduate programs in the fields of transportation
engineering and transportation planning as
additional functions.
 END OF MODULE ASSESSMENT 1
1. To illustrate the importance of transportation in our
national life, identify a transportation-related article that
appears in a local or national newspaper. Discuss the issue
involved and explain why the item was newsworthy.
2. How would your typical day be changed without
availability of your principal mode of transportation?
Consider both personal transportation as well as goods and
services that you rely on.
3. Identify one significant transportation breakthrough
event that occurred in the Philippines. Discuss the
significance of this event.

Long bond paper

Engineering Lettering
Submission: until next meeting
Scanned copy, PDF format
Thank You!