Low-hanging fruit

FROM the recent State of the Nation Address, the transport infrastructure priorities of the Marcos administration continue to be roads, bridges and railways — similar to the spending choices of the previous administration. With the current government beginning its third year in office and with only four years to go in its term, the priority should be on delivering results in the short to medium term that can improve the everyday transportation experience of ordinary Filipinos. The focus needs to be on picking "low-hanging fruit" that offers meaningful, broad-based improvements.

As a sustainable mobility advocate, I welcomed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s statement that "we are in the midst of a railway renaissance." He pointed to the significant progress in major rail projects: the Metro Manila Subway, North-South Commuter Railway and the MRT-7. Rail services, as high-capacity mass transit, are part of the formula for improving the mobility of urban Filipinos. Railways should continue to be a very important part of the public transportation mix and remain a high priority. But we shouldn't be placing all our eggs in the rail basket.