I am Paul Christian King C. Cusing, a third year standing BS Tourism Student, from Quezon City.

I once took the old PNR train and most of the time MRT in the Philippines.

My experience before was that sometimes it was too crowded when purchasing a ticket and traveling from one station to another, but it is faster and less expensive than bringing a private vehicle. 

I had a good experience using the PNR train that particular time from Tutuban to Alabang since we arrived at our destination without incident, and we were lucky that the train was not very crowded. Daily commuters used the train to get to work or local areas that were served by PNR stations at the time.

Then, I had the chance to go by train across Italy from Naples to Milan while we were there for the 30th Summer Universiade in Napoli in 2019. Overall, the train was smooth to use, quick, modern, and kept clean. The stations are also open to the public, and they have a nice ticket counter. I'm hopeful that one day, train travel in the Philippines will be as good as or perhaps better than this.

I have always used public transportation since I was young. Living in a city, I already tried different modes of transportation – tricycle and jeepney going to nearer places, bus going to school, as well as train going to my previous work. Among them, my favorite would be the train, the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Metro Rail Transit (MRT). Going to my previous school, I was always riding the LRT 2 and it was very convenient. Even though it was always jampacked during that time, I would still ride the train because it made my travel time shorter and I got to see the city view from above. My friends and I would always chitchat inside (which is strictly not allowed anymore) laughing and enjoying the airconditioned atmosphere inside. 

Moreover, during the days when I had work, I used to ride the MRT 1. Compared to MRT, I think that LRT has a more modern design and MRT has a much bigger volume of passengers. I also feel like I am safer in LRT since most of the passengers during my experience were students, compared to MRT where I noticed that the passengers were mostly older people going to their jobs. There’s also PNR which is just beside my previous school but unfortunately, I never got the chance to try it since its path is different from my way home. I hope that the government would recognize that most Filipinos are commuters, who always face life/death situations, and improve the way how the train system works.

Living in the southmost of Metro Manila while studying in Taft, buses has become a very big part of my high school years in St. Scho. Back then, whenever my classmates ask me where I live, I always joke around and reply,

         But, it’s true. I travel for almost 2 hours going to Taft and another 2 hours going home to Las Piñas. On bad traffic days, it can even cost you up to 2 and a half hours to three hours of a bus ride. On top of that, the buses are intensely packed due to a large number of commuters from the South (Alabang, Cavite, Las Piñas, Parañaque) who work/study in the North. And for me to be at school at 7:30, I had to be up at 4:30 AM and leave the house at 5. With this, I only get to sleep (at home) for 3-4 hours during high school. Looking back, I do not understand how I had the physical and mental strength to do all that, 5 times a week. Although I feel proud of myself for enduring that routine, I also feel sad that this is the reality of thousands many Filipinos just because we do not have an efficient public transport system that can accommodate the demands of all Filipino commuters.
According to the government, the PITX is one of their attempt to relieve the traffic congestion here in the metro by reducing provincial buses along Roxas Boulevard and EDSA-TAFT. But in my opinion, the PITX did not really reduce the traffic in the metro. It has only widened the roads for the rich people who travel within the comfort of their private cars, of course, at the expense of public transport commuters. It’s disappointing that the government’s remedy to relieve the traffic is to make one big infrastructure where they can crowd all commuters and buses. The long queues inside the PITX is clearly just another burden that the commuters have to carry, not a remedy.

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Every time I visit Singapore, I can't help but be awed by their PUVs (buses, taxis, and trains). Everything is clean, convenient, and fast. My favorite thing about SG bus stops are that if they notify the commuters that, “the bus will arrive in 10 minutes”, it really will come on time, as promised.
The Singapore MRT system is top-tier as well. It's clean, fast, cheap and very reliable. It has 8 lines and 187 stations which makes it easier for tourists to reach every attraction in SG shelling out too much money for taxi fares. Their efficient MRT is probably one of the reasons why SG’s total population is almost just a quarter of their international visits. As a tourist myself, I never had issues touring around the city because of their railway. Everything will go smoothly as long as you have a copy of the train network map on your phone. 

This is my biggest what-if for the Philippines. What if we had the privileges they enjoy? On a daily basis, could we have been more productive and less agitated as a country?

My name is Louis Kenneth A. Caguiat and I prefer to be called Louis, and I’m from Quezon City. Currently in my junior year taking up a BS in Tourism.

Commuting has been a big part of my life since I was a kid. I am originally from San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan before we moved here to Quezon City. Since my kindergarten days, and continuing through grade school, and high school, I have been commuting from Bulacan to QC for 13 years to be specific. Well, I must say, I have mastered all levels of commuting strategies; comparing different routes, deciding on a mode of transportation based on points A & B, and estimating travel time to save money and energy. Even though I am aware of how insufficient public transportation is here in the country, I still find it to be entertaining, liberating, and even therapeutic (but only while using rail transit, HAHA!).

[check for part 2]

I just hope there would be more rail transportation here in the Philippines in the near future,  just like in Japan/Korea. People would save more time, be more productive, and of course, save energy. 

Nice to meet you guys!