Anyways, as I was on my way to the office, I heard that MRT (Metro Railway Transit) was being discussed in the usual AM shows. They were actually pointing out or should I say bashing the management team of MRT. The lines are not systematic and often troublesome. CR reeked of foul acidic wastes. Ticketing system is not convenient and most importantly the cars aren't that comfortable.
I was a regular train passenger before, in MRT, when Accenture assigned me in one of their newest offices in Gateway Cubao for a year. I felt like I was going to Baguio. I seldom go to the north parts, twice a year tops, and it's usually for something that I really can't decline to. When I first heard that I will be based in Cubao I already thought of resigning, but I managed to consider the fact of MRT and renting an apartment there. MRT made my life easier. Even though I only get to use MRT twice a week before, every mondays going to Cubao and every saturday brunch going to the south, I still saw it as an extreme convenience. I like trains. For me it is the best ground transportation ever. Accessibility of various points with sufferable distances are made convenient and cheap via train rides. It's not a major cause of pollution, the travel time is super fast and you get to do more novel things in the car (that is if it's not during rush hours). It's the next best thing to teleportation. But even though my traveling time was fortunate I sometimes fell as a victim to losing my insanity when riding an MRT. The lines are not systematic and it's often a battle of physical effort to squeeze yourself in the car. The airconditioning is faulty, and you're cheek to cheek with the passengers. The car in itself is wobbly and the ticketing system inefficient and inconvenient.
Now that there are statistical reports coming up, MRT is more needed than ever. The rising prices of gas and goods force people to think of cheaper alternatives to save up. In terms of transportation, taking the MRT or other railway transits are at the top of their options aside from carpools, buses and "colorums." MRT only fares to about 10-20 pesos depending on the distance and it's basically half than what you pay for in vans and carpooling. Trains also guarantee faster travelling time and if it ever reaches your concern, it's environment friendly.
In the case of MRT, it's practically a no-brainer if you're working in Edsa and you live in the north. I even remember when I was in college that traveling from La Salle to Araneta, to watch the UAAP game, was just a walk in the park because of the conveniences of LRT and MRT. Trains connect people and crucial thoroughfares together. It cradles thousands of professionals, students and civilians every single day.
If the management and government would just find the initiative and ways to increase, popularize and enhance the transits, I doubt we would ever be so dependent in cars an oils. It improves the companies' infrastructures, it encourages faster business transactions and improving the lives of Filipinos.
1. Trains southbound. From Magallanes to Alabang or Laguna (Metro South)
2. Edsa to different points in Macapagal or MOA
3. Provincial, classy trains from Laguna to Bicol
Also, better equipment, better and more spacious facilities, better ticketing system and better management are needed to make these suggestions work. Equipment should be modernized, durable and dependable. Facilities like platform comfort rooms, security, airconditioning and stands should be clean and workable. Ticketing systems should be scattered in various points and not confined only in stations like in selected mall areas and main thoroughfare areas in the commercial and school districts. And they are right, as the reporters were talking about in the AM show I heard this morning, administration and management should be more attuned and visible to the public to ensure safety and in depth observation of the operations.
I hate to think the things that will happen if MRT or ay LRT malfunctions or closes down. There's no room for imagination on this one.
PIX from: MRT's official WEBSITE
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