As the government has started pushing for normalcy that includes reporting to work places and schools, a transport advocacy group said on Sunday, July 10, that Metro Manila is not yet ready for face-to-face classes.
The Passenger Forum Convener Primo Morillo stressed that the current situation of the public transportation in the National Capital Region (NCR) is not conducive to encouraging students to go back to their respective schools.
“While we understand that many sectors are already calling for a return to face-to-face classes, we are just saying that the government should be wary of the additional demand to our already heavily-burdened public transport system,” said Morillo.
“This problem needs to be addressed for us to successfully phase back into normal classroom-based education,” he added.
Lack of transportation to convey passengers have been a major problem in Metro Manila even before the pandemic and the situation worsened as a number of public utility vehicle drivers and operators decided not to hit the road due to high petroleum products.
Malacanang announced on Tuesday that they plan to start a phased transition to face-to-face classes starting September after Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte proposed a full face-to-face set up by November.
“The announcements from the Palace mean we have about two months to solve our public transport issues or at least provide some immediate relief to the plight of our commuters. One of the reasons why students and teachers want a shift to face-to-face is due to the stress they get from online classes,” said Morillo.
“Their stress will just shift from in front of their laptops to our sidewalks and PUVs (public utility vehicles) if we ignore the connection between the transport crisis and our target to return to face-to-face. Worse, physical fatigue will add to the mental exhaustion of our students and teachers,” he added.
The group has been calling for more public utility vehicles to ply routes, allow carpooling and company shuttles and maximize the Pasig River for public transportation.