IN the same way that we need to prepare for natural or man-made disasters, we need to invest in mobility infrastructure that will help Filipinos deal with present and future economic shocks. Over the past year, the country has been battered by the high cost of fossil fuels. With the recent escalation of the war in the Middle East, the price of crude oil is set to rise further in coming weeks.
With escalating prices, many Filipinos are looking for ways to make ends meet. This includes economizing on daily travel expenses. Diesel and gasoline are now more costly and in limited supply. A middle- to lower-income household in a city typically devotes about 20 percent of the household budget to travel expenses. Filipinos need travel options that do not require using a fossil-fueled motor vehicle or spending on fares.
A timely, low-cost response to the fuel crisis is the expansion of protected bike lanes in every city. Enabling a person to switch to using a bicycle is like giving the household 20 percent more disposable income, providing extra money to spend on food, health care, education, housing or other meaningful expenses.
In our country, there are four times more households with bicycles than households with cars. Most Filipinos could be traveling on bicycles every day — saving money, conserving fossil fuel and having very low environmental impact. What deters Filipinos from using a bicycle regularly?
First, our roads are generally unsafe for cyclists. Most existing bike lanes are only demarcated by paint, and paint is not protection. While there are some protected bike lanes (with barriers separating bicycles from motor vehicles), most of these are still far from safe.
Many protected bike lanes are too narrow, with not enough space even for two bicycles to ride side-by-side comfortably (or for a bicycle to overtake another within the lane). On many bike lanes, the pavement is riddled with hazards — potholes, protruding metal grates or uneven surfaces — that could easily cause a cyclist to spill.
Many bike lanes lack continuity; this leaves many cyclists with only part of their journeys on a protected bike lane. Oftentimes, the cyclist is often left unprotected at intersections, and at the end of the trip, there is often an absence of secure bike parking with proper bike racks.
There is also the common problem of encroachment into the bike lanes by motorcycles and cars. There are even cases where traffic enforcers actively encourage motorcycles to use the bike lane. Strict and unwavering enforcement of bike lanes is very much needed. The use of CCTV camera-based no-contact apprehension should be one of the strategies for keeping bike lanes free of motor vehicles.
One often hears the argument that bike lanes are not required, because there are no cyclists using them. Not true. Many cyclists travel in the early morning when the weather is cooler. Bike lanes could be empty because cyclists have already gone ahead of the motor vehicles stuck in traffic. Moreover, bike lanes, like sidewalks, are needed in order to keep vulnerable road users safe. No one argues that sidewalks should be removed because there are few pedestrians using them.
The annual bike counts by the Mobility Awards (covering only the morning and evening peak travel periods) show that there are significant numbers of cyclists (in 2024, 271,555 cyclists were counted across 138 counting locations in 18 local government units), and their numbers are growing (a 7.2-percent increase from 2023 to 2024).
Filipinos want more bike lanes everywhere. A recent Pulse Asia survey found overwhelming support (94 percent of respondents) for protected bike lanes to enhance cyclists’ safety. This is likely because almost every Filipino household has at least one family member or close friend that uses a bicycle regularly.
In a country where the infrastructure budget is close to P1 trillion, devoting P10 billion annually (just 1 percent of the infrastructure budget) for creating continuous networks of high-quality protected bike lanes, plus ample bike parking, would deliver significant benefits on a wide geographical basis.
More bike lanes would enhance the mobility of millions of Filipinos without burdening their budgets. Those on bicycles would have more predictable (and potentially shorter) travel times compared to those using motor vehicles. Spending less for daily travel, families using bicycles would have more disposable income.
More Filipinos would have active lifestyles, enhancing physical and mental health, and increasing life expectancy. With better protection for vulnerable road users, there would be fewer deaths and injuries to cyclists from road crashes. In addition, more “eyes-on-the-road” help to reduce and prevent crime.
If car or motorcycle users switch to using a bicycle, this would mean less pollution, reduced heat and noise from vehicle engines, and less production of climate-changing carbon. Tangible, visible results would be delivered within the remainder of the Marcos administration.
We would be foolish to forgo this opportunity to make our localities more livable and our citizens happier, healthier and more productive. The 2027 National Budget needs to include a meaningful budget for bicycle infrastructure.
Robert Y. Siy is a development economist, city and regional planner, and public transport advocate.
