Tricycle Drivers Strike Starting Monday...Things to Consider

Hey now, some of us aren't that old. I think some of us may see the day when trikes get dramatically reduced. Unfortunately I think the event that leads to this will be a tragic one. Something like a drunk trike driver on the wrong side of the road with a Ceres bus coming in the opposite direction and then minors being killed in the inevitable destruction. It is just a matter of time.

The more these trike drivers strike and the more people realize that life continues to move on without them the closer we get to a city without them clogging up the streets. These trike strikes will never go on for long as they know d*mn well how quickly they could be replaced by a better option. I don't think it will be all that long before they are restricted to the side streets and/or dedicated pick-up locations. There is a breaking point and I think they will be on their way out in my lifetime.

The city is very walkable. Starting from the city center you could walk to any location within 30-45 minutes, unless you are a gimp. From Valencia I can walk to the Dumaguete market and back in about 3 hours. It really isn't that difficult. A good portion of people taking trikes are just being lazy as you can easily walk a kilometer in 10-12 minutes and I've seen plenty of trikes stop to pick someone up only to drop them off 500 meters down the road. It's ridiculous and anyone that doesn't have luggage, very small children or a disability using a trike to go less than 1-2km should be ashamed of themselves.

I well thought out public transportation system with many stations that services the entire city that leaves only a few blocks of foot travel for city residents? Trikes and cabs really aren't needed in the city. Let's not act like this is some impossible endeavor, it certainly has been done. (Not saying that it will ever be done in Dumaguete.)

 

Eventually enough people (or well connected people) will be killed.

Grab and Lyft will eventually take over this need. They are more easily found/called in cities that have it and they have more transparent pricing. Just a matter of time before this happens. Could be 5 years, could be 20...impossible to tell.

 

This would cure the trike issue in and around the city. The sooner the better.

 

Bus routes with dedicated stations. No pick-up between stops. Many cities worldwide have successfully implemented a functional public transport system with the elderly, the disabled and children all being able to utilize it. Dumaguete is small and could easily have a system that required minimal walking between the stop and your home. Any areas (long side streets could be serviced by trikes). Public transport should be ran by the city and not private individuals it companies. Any jobs lost would be gained by the required work force needed to maintain such a system. Yeah, people would have to move from one unskilled job to another unskilled job but hey, if you don't like it think about your future and acquire a skill. Such a system is decades in to the future but I think it will eventually come.

As for walking, yeah, the disabled and elderly would still have those alternate transportation options. Humans are very capable of walking. If you are young and not disabled (which most of the population is here) you have few excuses for not being able to walk a kilometer or two in 20-30 minutes. The city definitely needs better sidewalks and shade (forbid property owners from needlessly cutting down trees) but it is not that big of a deterrent.