I’m not a fan of motorcycles. Sure, they’re somewhat cool to look at and they’re really fast, but my experiences with them are a little off – they’re not the safest vehicle in the road, accidents are frequently associated with them, rowdy motorists cut impatiently through traffic & they’re often tools used by criminals riding in tandem.
Image Source: (RAYMOND BALA LACSA / Photoville International)
Just recently, a lot of pressure has been put onto the authorities as motorcyclists have been quite more disobedient as usual. Aside from speeding through main roads & highways, riding in tandem crime cases are now more prominent. Articles have been written about it and 9 minutes into Bandila’s January 14 episode, it has been reported that there were 1,700 cases in 2011 according to the PNP. My father was also recently one of the victims falling into a hold-up by two men on a motorcycle without a vehicle registration.
The Manila City Government is now on the works on implementing new laws regarding this, and the VACC (Volunteers Against Crime & Corruption) is also working on the formation of a new group, seeking a better hold on the industry. A few suggestions include the wearing of white helmets & numbered vests, the registration of helmets with the police & the baranggay and a speed limit of 30kms/hour.
I’ll admit, I don’t think the government would take immediate action on this case, but seeing that with the proper timing & the sufficient amount of loudness, I think we can actually push forward for change.
Toyota i-Road showcased at CES 2014.
On another note, over at CES 2014, Toyota demoed their concept vehicle, the i-Road, which is something like an offspring of a motorcycle & an electric car that caught my full attention. It’s safer since it’s more of a smaller car than a motorcycle, it won’t go dangerously fast & it’s electrically environment-friendly.
For congested polluted cities such as ours, whose roads almost cannot expand anymore, cars get more in number every year & motorcycle accidents and crimes are frequent, cars like the i-Road are worth a look at. Give it more time to evolve and we’ll see.
There is still a lot more to fix regarding local transportation & the Philippines as a whole, but for now, I think I’ll end by saying this: technology is a way of doing things, and it can definitely further us into either progress or perdition. It all just depends on the attitude of the people now, on who is doing which. While we make the proper pushes to change society & technology, let’s all focus on the road and keep our attitudes clean. We’ll get there. Patience.
Update: Added links to Mayor Erap’s openness to banning motorcycle pillion riding.
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