The annual Holy Week exodus is traditionally defined by bustling terminals and family reunions, but a compounding global fuel crisis is forcing travelers and transport workers to make more drastic sacrifices to survive the soaring costs.
Many Filipinos are adjusting their travel habits as rising fuel prices and the increasing cost of basic goods strain household budgets.
Lita Sangin, 65, opted to use a ride-hailing app from Quezon City to Cubao to attend a family reunion and her grandchildren's graduation. Having given up a private vehicle, she said regular public commuting has become too difficult.
"It is hard, it is really hard right now," Lita said, adding that her family is stretching a budget of 300 pesos for an entire day's expenses. "We are really trying to save."
She urged the government to focus on basic needs over quick fixes. "I hope the price of food, goods, rice, and LPG goes down," she said.
Students face similar financial strains. Roi Traje, 19, is traveling to see his family after seven months away. Noting that his regular rice purchases now cost between 290 and 360 pesos, he said he resorts to buying single servings of cooked rice instead.
When it comes to transportation, Traje urged authorities to step in and "stabilize the fares." He observed that drivers, desperate to cover gas costs, sometimes charge students the regular fare, bypassing mandated discounts. While localized government-sponsored free rides are available in some regions, Traje said they are severely limited.
"The free rides are not for everyone, only for select places," he said.
Inside Cubao bus terminals, transport workers face physical exhaustion and operational shifts. Harry Fajardo, a conductor for Solid North, described the intense fatigue of the job as operators reduce bus deployments, forcing crews into grueling turnaround trips to destinations like Pangasinan.
"Now it's two ways, before it was just one way. Back and forth," Fajardo said. "They are reducing buses. It's exhausting."
At a bus terminal, Cesar Del Rosario, a dispatcher of 33 years, said the company hasn't cut its fleet, but many units sit idle. To conserve expensive fuel, bus engines are shut down much more frequently while waiting for passengers to board.
"There are more people now compared to last week," Del Rosario said. But he doubts passenger volumes will reach the usual annual peaks. "I'm not sure if it will increase further because, indeed, there's a crisis ongoing."
The government recently granted special permits to 1,297 buses to handle the expected surge, but the sheer cost of fuel has caused operators across several terminals to voluntarily reduce their trips.
The economic pain extends beyond provincial buses to urban ride-hailing drivers. Marvin Sangin, an app driver who operates in Pampanga, where gas prices are notably higher, said his take-home earnings have plummeted. While his fuel expenses increased from 200 pesos to between 350 and 400 pesos, vehicle maintenance costs consume a large chunk of his remaining revenue.
"We are operating at a loss," Marvin said, criticizing his app's token 4-peso delivery incentive as only enough "to buy candy."
When asked about public calls for the government to cut taxes to ease the burden, Marvin expressed frustration over the inaction.
"They should just do it. They are making fools out of people," he said. Both he and Lita agreed the government's relief efforts are too slow. "If there are crises like this, they should have acted long ago."
Despite the grueling conditions, Marvin said his resolve remains tied to his family's survival.
"We will just keep fighting," he said. "If you don't work, you don't eat. So we will just fight."