Government disputes ‘worst traffic on Earth’ tag

MANILA, Philippines - Metro Manila’s latest distinction of having “the worst traffic on Earth” is disputable and the government is committed to correcting this perception with programs and projects, a Malacañang official said Friday.

The label is based on the results of the first Global Driver Satisfaction Index developed by traffic and navigation application Waze.

The survey results, released on Sept. 29, is based on the driving experiences of Waze’s 50 million users in 32 countries and 167 urban areas.

Asked whether the survey was exaggerated, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said he believes that foreigners visiting the country could see for themselves the real situation and this would belie such negative perceptions of Metro Manila. 

In a press briefing, Coloma said this was the reason why the government had been implementing short- and long-term measures to ease traffic.

He said they were aware of the traffic congestion’s negative effects not only on the economy but on the people’s health and expenditures due to increased fuel consumption.

Coloma said the government was working with the Japan International Cooperation Agency in implementing a transport roadmap for the whole country

 Metro Manila has been reported to have the worst traffic on Earth on a city level, closely followed by Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in Brazil, and Jakarta in Indonesia.

The roads of the Philippines have also been reported to be one of the worst to drive on because of the frequency and severity of traffic jams, poor road infrastructures, among other reasons. Latin American countries, including El Salvador and Guatemala, are also among the lowest on the list.

But while Manila got the worst traffic, Indonesia had eight cities on the list of cities with the worst traffic all over the world, implying a dreadful driving experience country-wide. 

The evaluation used a grading system that ranged from a 10 (satisfying) to one (miserable). The Philippines got 0.4, followed by Guatemala and Venezuela, El Salvador, Ecuador and Colombia, as well as Indonesia, Romania, Costa Rica and Panama.

On the other hand, Netherlands, Slovakia, Sweden, and Czech Republic reported an easy and satisfying driving experience, as well as the United States and France, which are aided by smaller cities with appropriate infrastructure that is easy to navigate.

The average commuting time in Manila has been estimated at 45.5 minutes, making it the longest commute time in most major cities all over the world. 

As a country, the Philippines also scored low in the Road Quality Index and the Socio-Economic Index which is based on the access to cars and impact of gas prices. 

Meanwhile, the Safety Index by Waze reported that the Philippines has the safest roads based on number of accidents, road hazards and weather. The Philippines scored 9.3, preceded only by Costa Rica, Netherlands, and Argentina. 

The country also got the highest rank on the Drivers Services Index based on access to gas stations and easy parking.