LAST Monday, July 27, 2026, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivered his fifth and penultimate State of the Nation Address (SONA). The Move As One Coalition, in a recent social media post, summarized the key points made by the president related to transportation: “The transportation sector was discussed for 8 minutes and 32 seconds ... That's 10 percent of the total SONA delivery time. Among the topics mentioned were rail expansion, MRT and LRT projects, EDSA, financial assistance for transport workers, commuter discounts, service contracting, and relief from terminal fees. Beyond the time allotted, what matters most is how these commitments and updates translate into safer, more accessible, and more reliable mobility for every Filipino.” Below are my thoughts and reactions.
The focus on railway projects underscored the heavy concentration of public spending on capital-intensive projects with long gestation periods. When the budget envelope is limited (as it is these days), a few rail projects end up consuming nearly all the public funds available for land-based transportation. Rail is important but not very responsive when public transportation is severely insufficient. Railway projects tend to have very long implementation periods, usually far longer than originally projected. The MRT-7 is coming to nearly two decades and not yet operational.
The Metro Manila Subway and North South Commuter Rail projects were approved during the Duterte administration and will only be completed after the Marcos Jr. administration or beyond. Because queues are getting longer for suffering commuters and public transportation is more difficult to access, how can our railway projects deliver some benefits earlier, in advance of actual operations?
New railway projects usually include components for accessibility improvements around stations — upgrading pedestrian and bicycle pathways for several hundred meters around each station, plus secure bike parking. Sidewalks are made fully accessible and safe for persons with disabilities. If these features of the project can be front-loaded and delivered ahead of rail operations, local residents can already benefit from these urban realm enhancements. It will create more safe, walkable and bikeable spaces around transit stations. These features can also demonstrate the kind of active transport infrastructure that every neighborhood should have.
One bright spot in the president’s speech was his mention of service contracting, a practice launched during the pandemic to enable transport operators to sustain operations when revenues were insufficient to cover costs. Under net service contracting, transport operators are provided with a supplemental payment per kilometer of service. This transparent subsidy enables the public transport service to remain viable even when fares are kept low amid rising fuel costs. I hope that the 2027 national budget will include a significant allocation for service contracting so that this valuable subsidy can be applied on many more routes.
What was missing in the speech? Because commuters need relief urgently, I would have liked to hear the president talk about more public investment in upgrading and expanding road-based public transport. Filipinos need to have safe, efficient and reliable bus and jeepney services in all localities. Up until now, public transportation has been viewed only as something optional and based on private initiative.
For our cities and towns to be livable and for Filipinos to be healthy and productive (without wasting so much time in traffic), public transport needs to be safe, abundant and convenient so that we avoid becoming entirely car- or motorcycle-dependent. This means public transport should be viewed as an essential service just like health care and education.
Moreover, road-based public transport should be efficient and reliable. Because buses and jeepneys carry more passengers than a car or motorcycle, they should have priority on our roads. On heavily congested roads, it makes total sense to provide a dedicated or exclusive lane for public transport. In a country where only six percent of households own cars, prioritizing road space for public transport delivers the greatest good for the greatest number. Bus rapid transit, exemplified in the EDSA Busway, is the opportunity available in cities all over the country. It demonstrates that a bus-based mass transit system can be created in a relatively short time and with minimal spending.
However, the EDSA Busway is still far from reaching its potential in terms of capacity and quality. It needs more investment. If we spent a tenth of the cost of the subway on expanding the busway, it would deliver much higher mass transit capacity sooner. Bus rapid transit needs to be a significant part of the transportation toolkit (and infrastructure spending) of our national and local governments.
I was disappointed that the president did not make mention of the government’s efforts to create safe and attractive pathways for walking and cycling. Already, the improved sidewalk on portions of EDSA is receiving positive attention and commendations. The Pasig River Esplanade, one of his flagship projects, is a great example of public space that enables walking and cycling to be a pleasurable experience.
These two examples prove that walking and cycling infrastructure can provide early, low-cost and broad-based results, enabling efficient low-cost mobility and healthier lifestyles. At a time when Filipino households are trying to make ends meet, offering low-cost travel options is one of the best ways that the government can respond.
In the forthcoming 2027 budget of the government, I hope to see more balanced transportation spending that includes a reasonable share for road-based public transport and active transport, instead of the near exclusive concentration on railways that leaves Filipinos bereft of tangible results for decades.
Robert Y. Siy is a development economist, city and regional planner, and public transport advocate.
