The Labor Day smashup at the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) in Tarlac that killed a dozen people is part of a growing list of frightening road incidents that experts said are all avoidable.
Recent road accidents are characterized mainly by high fatalities, significant injuries, and widespread impact, often involving multiple vehicles, hazardous roads, or human error.
The recent mishap involved a passenger bus, reportedly with the driver falling asleep, that collided with multiple vehicles, including a truck, at a toll gate on the SCTEX, one of the busiest highways in northern Luzon.
The crash caused a massive pileup, killing four children and six other passengers en route to a religious youth camp in Pangasinan, with over 30 others injured. The incident prompted the Department of Transportation (DoTr) to issue a preventive suspension against Solid North buses.
The bus crash in Hamtic, Antique in December 2024, where the driver of a passenger bus lost control on a mountain road and plunged the vehicle into a ravine after smashing into a concrete railing, resulted in at least 16 deaths and was the worst in the recent period, followed by the Tanay, Rizal bus tragedy in February 2017 that resulted in 14 fatalities, primarily students.
The Antique accident was blamed in part to poorly maintained roads in mountainous terrain, a recurring problem, especially during peak travel seasons.
World Health Organization, Department of Transportation experts, and road safety advocates believe that road accidents in the country are mainly avoidable by addressing human error, enforcing laws, upgrading infrastructure, ensuring vehicle safety, leveraging technology, and fostering cultural change.
The government has a Road Safety Action Plan that aims to reduce deaths by 35 percent by 2028, but Health Secretary Ted Herbosa cited recent data that showed the Philippines is regressing from the target.
One of the civil works experts said decision-makers must prioritize implementation over rhetoric and ensure accountability at all levels.
Rising deadly road incidents also punish the economy, at an estimated P105 billion yearly, reflecting medical expenses, property damage and lost productivity.
The figure is a conservative estimate since accidents are underreported, with only 10 percent of crashes documented.
Weak enforcement of traffic laws, sloppy road infrastructure, and a cultural tolerance for risks like overloading or speeding exacerbate the issue.
Socioeconomic factors, such as reliance on public transport and lack of access to quality vehicles, also disproportionately harm low-income Filipinos, as seen in rural bus crashes, a community planner explained.
Despite most highways being handed over to the private sector, which assumes efficiency, accidents are becoming more horrifying by the year.
Many private-run roads still have potholes, inadequate signage, and poor lighting, making driving hazardous, especially at night or during rainy seasons.
While better maintained than public roads, for instance, the most expensive elevated thoroughfare in terms of fees, the Skyway, has safety gaps.
Its entry and exit points often connect to congested, poorly designed public roads, creating dangerous transition zones.
Skyway operates under a public-private partnership model that prioritizes revenue generation.
While toll hikes are justified by maintenance and expansion costs, there is little evidence of proportional investment in advanced safety measures, such as automated speed enforcement, real-time traffic monitoring, crash-prevention technologies, and even the remote collection system.
Then there’s the rising inequity between state-run infrastructure and the tollways.
The focus on premium infrastructure diverts resources from improving public roads, where most accidents occur.
Poor road surfaces, inadequate signage, and a lack of pedestrian infrastructure on non-toll roads increase crash rates. Private-operated highways’ revenues are not reinvested into public systems, perpetuating a cycle of risk for those unable to afford tolls.
To prevent further highway massacres, an overhaul of the neglected and antiquated road and traffic system policies must be considered.