⌛ Trikes in Dumaguete

Too many trikes, scooters, and motorcycles. This is one of the reasons that we left dumaguete. I met a person in McDoo's and he said that he was in a scooter accident and explained to me that he was side swiped by a trike. He went on to say that 85% of all accidents going into the emergency room at the local hospital were scooter/trike/motorcycle related! That same day, my driver had to go to a funeral of one of his friends that had died in a scooter accident. I have personally been riding motorcycles since I was 11 years old. From mini bikes to dirt bikes to cafe racers. One of the problems is that most of these scooter/trike/ motorcycles drivers do not know fear! When you wipe out and incur huge rasberrys on your legs, arms, etc and or break a bone while driving a motor bike then, you know fear! Just recently, a friend of mine got whacked from behind by a car that had just passed a jeepney and did not see my friend that was in front of the jeepney. I could go on and on.

 

Historically Dumaguete has allways had more motorcycles per capita than other cities. At one time not so many years ago there were few if any cars, everyone had scooters.

It is the way it is here. Lately of course, cars have increased in numbers. Driving in the philippines in general is not like driving in a western country, no matter where you are. Traffic lights or not, drivers are typical undisciplined and seemingly unaware of the dangers of having a two year old stand on the seat, four people on a 100cc, txting while driving etc.

I would say that probably you could go anywhere in Southeast Asia and see the same habits. Even go to eastern Europe and drive in Poland etc. a very different experience. But mostly cars, obviously.

Thee stories you told here, while ptobably true, are I think exagerating the risk and situation extant here. It really surprises me that there are so few accidents given the driving habits.

I too have riden bikes all my life. The most valuble training I had for Dumaguete driving was Trials riding. The people here are actually very skilled and exhibit excellnt balance and kinesthetic skills, masked by their apparent casual style and lack of the fear of consequences.

Filipinos are generally more aware of their surroundings and very observant when driving. you are being seen and watched whether you know it or not.

One of the interesting conventions is approaching an intersection and not letting the other guy crossing your path know that you really see him. You do of course, but eye contact has a point of effect. Whereas if you can catch the eyes of an oncomming trike driver soon enough, you got him. If you wait too long he simply seems to ignore your stare and will procede as if he does not see you.

The danger here(philippines in general) comes from intoxicated drivers at night or even in the day. Alcohol is the intervening variable that is responsible for most injuries and fatalities. There is no DUI here, No enforcement etc. everyone who drinks, also rides.

Unlike the U.S. where one takes little responsibility for others actions while driving, relying on a social contract of traffic laws to be observed, here driving is a group experience, you watch the other guy,he watches you.

The other fact about the traffic downtown is that yes it is congested at daytime peak hours, but still, unlike larger cities at night there is virtually no traffic after 9 PM except some along Perdices and the BVLD.

Not to say there are not issues to be addressed, reducing tricycles or regulating them somehow, it is not as bad as the picture you paint IMHO.

 

I guess if you went to the local hospitals and asked them what the percentage of accidents or injured people that are taken to their emergency rooms because of accidents with scooters/motorcycles and or trikes would statistically give a better idea of the situation.

That person that I spoke with at McDoo's told me that the amount of injured patients going to the emergency room that were on motorbikes, trikes, etc was 85%! If it is this high then, it is a problem. A problem for the people that are injured, a problem for the hospital's emergency rooms (capacity and other patients to take care of) and a problem for the police force.

I think that an electric trolley system similiar to San Francisco's trolley system would be nice.

Lastly, I heard that in the city proper of Davao, the Mayor does not allow trikes!

Funny story, a friend of mine from Bais told me that a group of his friends were all riding dirt bikes with all the gear (big boots, leather pants, helmuts, gloves, etc) and the were going up this mountain. They came to a steep slope and stopped. As they were pondering on how to climb this steep slope two motorcycles with extended boards for passengers went flying by them with just their zories (flip flops) on and a big smile on their faces! I wish I was there to see that!

 

All politics is local? Didn't the Speaker of the House during Reagan's Presidency say this? Tip O'Neil? I think he wrote a book and this was the title.
I say copy or look at what Davao did with their trike/ motor cycle/ scooter problem. Maybe no bikes/trikes/scooters in Dumaguete city proper. Maybe a time constraint would work.

 

How I wish I could agree with that...
Driving since more then 2 years nearly every day, mostly on motorbike, from Zamboanguita to and inside Dumaguete, I have a quite different opinion about the GENERAL observation ability (or better to say here "observation habit" ?).
E.g.: Many times drivers of motorbikes (but also of tricycles and cars) are reacting very surprised when passing them.
No.....I don't use the horn each time I want to pass a motorbike or vehicle.
And No, I don't scare them by passing them too near.
Even when they HAVE mirrors, the did not use them to look in to check if someone is coming from behind.
The use of external and internal mirrors is IMHO here far less comon practise than in western countries, where it is an essential part of the training and examination process.

 

Just to get my driving license there, I only attended 1 time seminar in the LTO and the lecturer made a joke that the driving license “is a license to kill or to be killed”. With no driving testing if I really know how to drive or if I know all the rules in driving ….I got my license. So no wonder why many vehicular accident there.

 

Thks Daffs. That indeed explains a lot.

What does wonder me already a long time is why so many Filippino/a drivers, driving a normal "luxury" car (with a still reasonable appearance) drive on the National Highway (sorry, but that's how they call that road) with a speed which equals that of a fast bicycle.
I thought that either they are too scared to get damages on their still good looking vehicle or are (how we use to call them) "Sunday-drivers" who have no real driving experience since they use their car only for special occasions like going to the church on a beautifull Sunday.

Who can tell me the real reason(s) ?

 

Interesting jelly, we live in two different Philippines, most of the cars I see are going 100 plus passing anywhere and every thing.

You think they are not skilled drivers on motor bikes? Then maybe you could put 5 people on a habal Habal and ride uip to the Japanese shrine :D

 

Yes RHB, quite different observations is'nt it ?
Busses (Ceres Liners), trucks and jeepneys drive often fast, but are no luxury private cars.
Private cars going very fast are in many cases in "my" Philipino part of the world driven by foreigners (yes by me as well, I need to admit).

We differ also in judgement about "driving skills".
It's not (as I see it) a point of being very observant in driving (your statement) when you take your whole family on a motorbyke with your baby in front of the gasoline tank catching the flies or when you text your GF or BF while taking a turn to right or left.
Neither I call it an observant-skill to drive up a mountain on a motorbike with 5 people on it.
But yeah.....on one point you're right..... doing THAT requires quite some skills :D
But that was not my point.

 

I think all of this goes back to my idea of just getting the statistics from the local hospital's emergency wards. That should indicate if their is a problem with trikes/motorbikes/scooters.

Some Filipinos may be good riders or drivers but, having better dexterity and more observant eyes than anyone else is simply not true. Jelly does bring up some good points with the fact that most of these scooters/motor bikes have no mirrors on them and this is an intergral part of the problem too.

I also noticed that most of the scooter/motorbike people in dumaguete rarely wear helmuts. Up here in Pampanga, it is just the opposite and the local police set up traps at different intersections every week to catch these people with no helmuts, no real license, etc.

Why is a trike driver exempt from having to wear a helmut while driving his/her trike? Are they skirting the laws too?