MANILA, Philippines — With schools and industries opening up to on-site operations, a new research has found that Metro Manila is the eighth worst in the world in hours spent in traffic among cities.
A research by insurance technology site GoShorty showed Manila has a 43 percent congestion level and 98 hours lost to traffic annually, or more than four days that Filipinos spend in the Metro's infamous traffic jams every year.
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GoShorty identified the countries with the highest amount of low emissions zone schemes implemented to determine which of the world’s cities have the busiest roads.
Under the Urban Access Regulations in Europe, low emission zones are defined as "areas where the most polluting vehicles are regulated."
"Usually this means that vehicles with higher emissions cannot enter the area. In some low emission zones the more polluting vehicles have to pay more if they enter the low emission zone," a briefer on the Urban Access Regulations site reads.
GoShorty said it gathered data from the TomTom Traffic Congestion Index to get the congestion rates and time lost to traffic for both worldwide cities and UK cities.
It then ranked each city on its congestion rate and used Urban Access Regulations to get the countries with the highest amount of low emissions zone schemes implemented.
No country outside of North America and Europe finished in the top 15 countries in terms of low emission zone schemes.
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"A lot of people all over the world use a car for their daily commute or to run errands, it’s a source of transportation that is readily available. Yet, one of the most significant downsides is when you are unfortunately stuck in gridlocked traffic," the study said.
"In 2020 we saw a drop in congestion and traffic, due to the pandemic. However, in 2022 we’re seeing more people going places again, returning to a form of normal. As such, there has been a worldwide rise in congestion, despite the rising cost of fuel prices."
Other cities
Istanbul, the most populated city in Turkey and Europe, was listed as the most congested city in the world, with a congestion level of 62 percent.
Residents of the Turkish capital spend around 142 hours in traffic jams - the equivalent of nearly 6 whole days. The city saw an 11-percent increase in traffic from 2020, meaning that on average, car journeys will take 62 percent longer.
One of the largest cities in the world, Bogota, ranked second with a congestion level of 55 percent. In 2021, Bogota lost 126 hours to traffic, making a drive in the city look a little less appealing.
Topping the list is Mumbai, the eighth most populous city in the world with around 20 million people. The Indian city has a congestion rate of 53 percent as of 2021.
Traffic in Manila
In a 2018 study, the Japan International Cooperation Agency said that traffic costs the Philippines P3.5 billion in "lost opportunities" daily. The amount is expected to triple in number by the year 2030.
Former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chair Romando Artes said that in 2021, 300,000 vehicles were sold; 60 to 70 percent of which go in and out of Metro Manila each day.
Data from the World Health Organization published in 2018 said that the total life expectancy in the Philippines for both men and women is 69.3 years.
The Boston Consulting Group revealed in 2017 that Manila's traffic congestion cost motorists an average of over an hour lost in traffic every day, putting it at third worst in Southeast Asia.
— Franco Luna with a report from Kaycee Valmonte