Bus Accidents in the Philippines

I was watching 24 Oras, Philippine GMA Channel 7's primetime news program, last night, as I always do, and I'm starting to be extra concerned about the number of vehicular accidents happening in the country. Most of the ones shown on the news were accidents where buses are involved and sadly, there were numerous fatalities from those accidents. So last night, there was news of an incident where another bus crashed into the gate of a house where 10 people died. This was also reported in an article on inquirer.net.

In my opinion, there was negligence on the part of the driver. As reported in 24 Oras, and based from the video they showed, the road was inclined and the bus is on the downward direction. Witnesses said that the bus was traveling at high speeds thus, if he was responsible enough, he should have slowed down and could have reacted correctly.

Reaction times when something wrong happens on the road should be very quick. The higher the speed is, the faster the driver should react. When the bus was lifted, the right side of the bus was a total wreck and it's not a surprise that a lot of people didn't survive.

Recently, around mid-June, a bus crashed and killed most of its passengers who were mostly Iranians. 24 Oras reported at that time that the bus was at a high speed coming into a sharp corner. The driver miscalculated the turn and lost control of the bus. The bus went careening down a steep hill.

I drive most of the time and it's no surprise that buses are very prone to accidents. Most of the bus drivers that I see are driving really fast even in congested traffic. You can actually see the bus sway from left to right as they cut lanes. There are some really responsible bus drivers but their breed seems to be dwindling down. My sister and I often see buses named "Safeway". Contrary to their namesake, they are extremely reckless drivers.

Well, correct me if I'm wrong but all of the Safeway buses we've seen were irresponsible. We even saw 2 of them on the circumferential road in Quezon City Circle and they were practically racing with each other cutting every opportunity they get.

Of course, there's a possibility of unexpected technical problems with the buses but if the driver is responsible, he could have prevented an accident or at least minimize its effects. The authorities suspended the franchises of these bus companies to prevent possible future accidents. Who knows if they hired a more reckless driver or have a much more faulty bus? I say that they should do psychological profiling especially for public utility vehicle drivers.

Well, I just hope that drivers become more responsible while on the streets. This should apply to all drivers. The risk of accidents happening is unpredictable but reckless driving can most certainly increase that risk. Drive safely and if you're a passenger, ask the driver to slow down. If he doesn't comply, report them to authorities and I suggest that you alight from the vehicle.

Sources:
24 Oras - GMA Channel 7 primetime news program
July 5, 2010 broadcast

Inquirer.net - 10 dead in Cebu bus crash, July 3, 2010
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100703-279040/10-dead-in-Cebu-bus-crash