Jeepney Annoyances #9 – Fixed Number of Passengers

“Siyaman! Siyaman!”

Everyone has heard this phrase being uttered by the ever-reliable barker.  If you’re the first in the jeepney it wouldn’t be a problem.  It wouldn’t be a problem even if you’re the second, the third, the fourth and so on.  It would only be a problem, and it could be a big problem,  if you’re the ninth passenger to go on board the jeepney.

Because barkers don’t take into account the passenger size.  Even if eight large passengers have already occupied the left or right side of the jeepney, these barkers would still wait for one more to complete the maximum of nine passengers for each side without taking into consideration the sizes of those already sitting.

So the poor ninth passenger would sit with barely a space left on the seats.  And if no one would like to sit in that cramp ninth space, then woe to those first eight passengers since the jeepney wouldn’t proceed without that ninth passenger since the jeepney, after all is “siyaman”.

Jeepney Annoyances #8 – Perils of Empty or Near Empty Jeepneys

It’s dangerous to ride a near empty or empty jeepney.  Several things can happen.

One, the other passenger might disembark before you.  Thus, leaving you alone.  If you’re alone there are several things that can happen.  The jeepney driver might cut his trip and transfer you to another jeepney or he could just return your fare and drop you in no man’s land!

The other scenario for a near empty or empty jeepney is that the driver would stop on each corner and wait for several seconds for potential passengers.  Imagine the cumulative delay that you would encounter.  At least you would still arrive in your destination, although minutes late.

So choose not the empty or near empty jeepneys.  It’s for your own good!

Jeepney Annoyances #7 – “Deaf” Drivers

You have said “Para!” for the umpteenth time. You have knocked the roof senseless ’til your knuckles bled. But still the driver goes on ignoring you and will only stop 2 or 3 blocks from your intended destination.

It might be a case of deafness due to the noise of the jeepney or the noise from other vehicles. Or the driver might just be plainly ignoring you. Well, I don’t know and I don’t usually ask.

It’s a good thing that some drivers have remedied this situation. They have placed a rope around the roof handle bars, and this rope is connected to a bell of some kind. So if you’re stop is near, all you have to do is pull the rope to ring the bell. This works, but sadly most jeepneys don’t have these.

Jeepney Annoyances #6 – Rusted Roof Handle Bars

All of us passengers know this part of the jeepney. This is where we hold on to for dear life whenever a driver suddenly decides to break or speed up way faster than is allowed on the streets or much faster than the jeepney can handle. This is where we hold on to to avoid displacing the passenger sitting next to us. So this is one of the most important parts of the jeepney. But sadly, those with older models, have an equally older and rustier roof handle bars (If that’s what it’s really called. Dunno the exact term, though, but roof handle bars come close).

So we pretend everythings AOK and hold on to them during those sudden jeepney breaks and speed ups while silently letting go of them for the normal parts of the trip. I guess us passengers should wear those gloves worn by race car drivers.

Jeepney Annoyances #5 – Bobbleheads

It’s bound to happen… sooner or later. You come home late one night, then suddenly a bobblehead sits beside you. These bobbleheads come in two flavors: the drunk and the sleepy. The drunk bobblehead is more potent since aside from the bobbling you get a free sniff of whatever he drank last for each bobble. But for the sleepy bobblehead you get the occassional snore. But they have one thing in common, they’re both annoying.

Each time the jeepney stops, these bobbleheads tend to bang your arm or the arm of the poor fellow sitting on his other side. And they tend to linger around, so this banging will go on for the whole trip.

Jeepney Annoyances #3 & #4

Imagine the scenario. You’re tired after waiting for an eternity for a jeepney to arrive. Then an almost full jeepney arrived. Now you’ve felt some hope. Then you get on the jeepney. The passengers then instantaneously move as one to free up a space for you. How touching! Until you see the location of the space they’ve freed up. It’s the one near the driver!!!

You would be lucky if the jeepney is not too long, otherwise you would have to walk like a hunchback while wading across a lake of knees to get to your provided location.

Which brings me to another jeepney annoyance: Can they make the roof of the jeepney a little higher so you could walk in and out without getting a backache?

Happy weekend to everyone!

Jeepney Annoyances #2 – Barkers

Standing proud and mighty is he, in front of a queue of jeepneys. An epitome of confidence and smug. Shouting orders to embarking passengers. Some even stomping the sides of the jeepney for emphasis. Always shouting that there’s still room for 1 or 2 more since the jeep is “siyaman” even though it’s already full to the brim. We, the poor passengers, will then have to squeeze our butts to half its size to accomodate those. Then as our jeepney left, the barker repeats all of the above to the next jeepney in line. Now, you gotta ask, do we really need those barkers?

Jeepney Annoyances #1 – Sudden Gas Stops

Don’t you just hate it when you’re running late and the jeepney suddently turns to a gas station and leisurely have its pump filled up? That’s what seems to always happen to me when I’m running late… I guess it’s an extension of that ubiquitous Murphy’s law.