ON 2012, THE ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK PROVIDED THE PHILIPPINES TRANSPORT

SECTOR ASSESSMENT, STRATEGY, AND ROAD MAP. WITHIN THE ASSESSMENT, IS THE
DISCUSSION REGARDING THE ROAD TRANSPORT SYSTEM IN THE PHILIPPINES. IT IS STATED
THAT AS OF 2011, THE COUNTRY’S ROAD SYSTEM COMPRISED ABOUT 215,000 KM WITH 15%
OF IT CLASSIFIED AS NATIONAL ROADS, AND 85% AS LOCAL ROADS. 79% OF NATIONAL ROADS
WERE PAVED WITH ASPHALT OR CONCRETE, WHICH IS WELL BELOW THE 95% TARGET OF THE
GOVERNMENT. AS OF 2011, 45% OF THE NATIONAL ROAD WERE ASSESSED AS BEING IN A
GOOD OR FAIR CONDITION. WHILE AS OF 2009, ONLY 20% OF THE LOCAL ROAD WERE GOOD.
THE ANNUAL INVESTMENT IN THE ROAD SYSTEM IS ABOUT 0.6% OF GDP, WHICH IS BELOW THE
IDEAL 5%, RESULTING TO LIMITED EFFORTS TO UPGRADE OR EXPAND THE NETWORK. ALSO
INCLUDING THE POOR AND INADEQUATE MAINTENANCE, IT LEAVES US WELL BEHIND THE
REGIONAL NEIGHBORS IN TERMS OF THE QUALITY OF ROAD SYSTEM.
WITH ABOUT 12% OF ALL TRUCKS BEING OVERLOADED, THE HIGH PREVALENCE OF
OVERLOADED TRUCKS ALSO CONTRIBUTES TO THE POOR QUALITY OF ROAD NETWORKS,
ALONG WITH THE POOR ENFORCEMENT OF TRAFFIC REGULATIONS. SUCH QUALITY OF ROAD
CONTRIBUTES TO THE RISING ROAD ACCIDENTS WHICH IS THE FOURTH LEADING CAUSE OF
DEATH AS PER DOH. IN 2005, THE NATIONAL COST OF ROAD ACCIDENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES
WAS ESTIMATED TO BE $1.9 BILLION, BEING 2.8% OF THE COUNTRY’S GDP.
DEVELOPING EXPRESSWAYS TO ADDRESS TRANSPORT LIMITATIONS WAS DONE TO LINK
MAJOR ECONOMIC TRANSPORT CENTERS, LINK INDUSTRIAL PARKS AND SPECIAL ECONOMIC
ZONES, AND FACILITATE MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT. WHILE THESE REDUCED TRAVEL TIMES
SIGNIFICANTLY, INCREASING PORT CAPACITY AND IMPROVING MANAGEMENT ARE STILL
NECESSARY TO FULLY UTILIZE THE BENEFIT OF MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT SYSTEM.