How Mechanically Safe Is Transportation Here

[Travis]

I keep reading all the stories of accidents & I have seen first hand bald tires on buses vhires taxis jeepneys & even on some bikes so I am wondering if anyone has ever been in an accident while on public transportation here? are there any regulations for safety here? I feel safe on the short taxi or jeepney runs to the malls coz they cannot pick up much speed in traffic but I was sh&tten my pants on a vhire ride to Toledo months back when the driver was flying for the road conditions involved & everything was one big blurr as we flew by

[OldUgly&Cranky]

i dont know about the safty thing traverler but i have seen some scarry things too , like a huge acetylene tank lying on the floor and it wasnt tied down or anything on a ordinary bus that we took from aloguinsan cebu where my gf mother is from and we had to take this ruff road and the tank was bouncing and rolling from side to side :o and then when we were transfering to another bus they had opened the place where they put the bags in and when i looked they were hosing this burlap sack down with water what was inside a PIG haha and yes you are right about the vhire guys especailly from toledo to cebu city run , thats a very scarry run across the mountains and these guys are flying , now what i do when i have to take that run i bring my laptop and watch a movie so i dont have to look outside or think about it , plus it makes a few locals happy as well coz they get to watch a movie too :)have a good one SAFE TRAVELSOldUGLY&Cranky

[Jim Sibbick]

I keep reading all the stories of accidents & I have seen first hand bald tires on buses vhires taxis jeepneys & even on some bikes so I am wondering if anyone has ever been in an accident while on public transportation here? are there any regulations for safety here? I feel safe on the short taxi or jeepney runs to the malls coz they cannot pick up much speed in traffic but I was sh&tten my pants on a vhire ride to Toledo months back when the driver was flying for the road conditions involved & everything was one big blurr as we flew by

Most definitely unsafe but surprisingly few accidents for what you see and experience!Regards; Jim

[tropicalwaste]

I use some public transport but going provincial always drive myself.. problem is when there is an accident involving a bus or a truck its pretty much guaranteed deaths as well. Like the bus hitting head on with the truck outside South Gen hospital Minglanilla where over 13 people died or the Iranian bus crash currently totaling 21 deaths. You only have to watch the news though as every night crashes and deaths are reported in Manila although mainly motorcyclists are killed it seems they get hit way to often by large trucks..

[Jake]

I keep reading all the stories of accidents & I have seen first hand bald tires on buses vhires taxis jeepneys & even on some bikes so I am wondering if anyone has ever been in an accident while on public transportation here? are there any regulations for safety here? I feel safe on the short taxi or jeepney runs to the malls coz they cannot pick up much speed in traffic but I was sh&tten my pants on a vhire ride to Toledo months back when the driver was flying for the road conditions involved & everything was one big blurr as we flew by

Unfortunately, same old sh&t happens every year. Even a mechanically perfect bus has the potentialto kill its passengers. Sure there are safety regulations, don't you see the maximum capacity signwhen you board a bus. Yeah right.....same goes for inter-island passenger/cargo ships and bancaboats. If it's not corruption in the local shop, it could be lack of parts (so they jerry rig), using inferior partsor cannibalization, which would lead to pending disasters. The material state of the Philippine Air Force is a case in point.One could argue that disasters strikes even in the ultra modern transportation system. But when yousee a double deck configuration on a tricycle, it's quite obvious that safety takes a back seat.Respectfully -- Jake

[Mr Lee]

And yet another deadly bus accident 41 killed in Benguet bus mishap SABLAN, Benguet, Philippines – Forty-one passengers of a La Union-bound bus were killed when it fell into a ravine yesterday morning in what could be the worst highway disaster here. Initial reports showed that the ill-fated ESO-Nice bus (AYB-549) lost its brakes before falling into a 30-meter ravine along sitio Guiwing, Banangan, Sablan at around 9:20 a.m. So how would we go about avoiding these things while still traveling around the Philippines?

[ekimswish]

I rode scooters in Taiwan, which is by no means safe, but even with all that experience I'm not sure if I'll get one in the Philippines. Riding in Taipei city is dangerous, but because of all the traffic lights, you probably won't get hit and killed on impact at a high speed. Riding along a provincial road in the Philippines will get you obliterated by some speeding bus or dump-truck, and I've still got kids to raise. Scooters make life so easy, while alive, but those buses are rarely NOT passing someone on the other side of the road.

[Mr Lee]

And yet another bus accident, probably due to faulty servicing. :wt-hell: Bb. Pilipinas titlist, 2 others die in car-bus collision Binibining Pilipinas titlist and 2 other persons died in a vehicular accident in Bula town, Camarines Sur on Saturday morning. Police identified the victims as Melody Gersbach, 2009 Binibining Pilipinas International; her make-up artist, Alden Orense; and, their driver, Santos Ramos Jr.. Melody landed in the Top 15 of the 2009 Miss International contest held in China. The contest was won by Miss Mexico. Police said the victim's red Toyota Innova was cruising along a highway in Sitio Banasi, Barangay Pawili when it was rammed by a CG Guevarra bus past 11 a.m.. Initial reports said the bus ran over the beauty titlist's car, ripping off its top, before ramming a tree along the highway. Gersbach's companion, Ronald Lita, survived the crash. Four bus passengers were also hurt. Police said the driver of the bus, identified as Wilson de los Santos, has surrendered to the police in nearby Pili town. De los Santos said the bus' tie rod broke, which is why he lost control of the bus, hitting the Innova.

[joeatmanila]

I can write an essay on that!!!! But what i do makes me feel safer.Going places yes, as long as is with a plane or a boat. I trust them more than these speeding coffins called buses. If no other chance then i might not visit the place at all. In 8 years i only travelled with bus twice and i hope i will not need again.I prefer driving my self, keeping always the right lane (so to give space to the opposite direction bus and not have head on crush) and looking through my mirror upon i see them i light up my right flash keep as right as i can and let them go to heaven without me!!! I might arrive an hour later but i am sure i will arrive to my destination and not in heaven.There is a reason for their speeding. The drivers get paid with a percentage from the tickets instead of a fixed salary. See them before they start their adventure, they make their cross and pray they will not harm or be harmed. They got lots of mouths to feed and it all depends to their speed.Anywhere in the world one would pay the bus driver as such you'll get the same results. I think a nice label on these buses would beBAGUIO orHeaven:):wt-hell::)

[Jollygoodfellow]

Another deadly bus crash today,this part of the story says it all.

Poorly maintained vehicles and roads, along with inadequate safety signs, drivers' lack of training and weak traffic law enforcement are blamed for many deadly accidents in the Philippines.

Philippine bus loses brakes, crashes into creek, killing 5 and injuring 49MANILA, Philippines — A passenger bus plunged into a creek in a mountainous region southeast of the Philippine capital early Sunday, killing five people and injuring 49.Police and firefighters struggled in the dark for several hours as they pulled the dead and injured from the overturned bus at the bottom of the creek in Quezon province's Pagbilao township, police said.The rest of the storyhttp://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5j8s30tlIYG2oq2lgk6tefhdH18Xg