Mt. Arayat – the Lonely Mountain
A trip north will usually bring travelers to see a lonely mountain, actually a volcano, that is Mt. Arayat. Located in Pampanga province, you can see Mt. Arayat clearly as you traverse the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX). The volcano is actually visible even from afar on a clear day. I have shared photos of it from our village in Antipolo, Rizal.
Mt. Arayat as viewed from the NLEX viaduct. On the foreground is the Candaba Swamps
Another view of the ‘extinct’ volcano dominating the Pampanga landscape. Is it really extinct or perhaps just waiting to be awakened by a force of nature? That was how Mt. Pinatubo became active after a powerful earthquake a year before its big eruption.
I have seen the Mt. Arayat up close on a few occasions. One such time and perhaps the closest I’ve seen it was when we traveled along its foot to get to a wake in a far off Nueva Ecija town. There are actually many plantations or farms around it and along its slopes.
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Off to Baguio
I’m off to Baguio City after more than 8 years. Though it’s not the first time to use all three expressways (NLEX, SCTEX and TPLEX) going there, I am curious about the developments along the way. TPLEX now extends all the way to Rosario, La Union. Also, there should be a lot of changes already in Baguio city especially after the pandemic and the projects of the current mayor. The latter includes a more people-friendly Session Road that I have yet to see for myself.
I will try to share photos and updates on this trip in future posts even while in Baguio. The city is a sentimental place for me as my first major project after graduating from university was there. And I had experienced walking around the city on many occasions.
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Planning for True Transportation Affordability: Beyond Common Misconceptions
How much do we spend on transportation as part of our budgets? Is it 5% of your monthly budget? Is it 10%? Or is it eating up a substantial part of what you’re earning?
Source: Planning for True Transportation Affordability: Beyond Common Misconceptions
To quote from the article:
“This research indicates that many common policies favor expensive transportation and housing over lower-cost alternatives, which drives the cost of living beyond what is affordable, leaving too little money to purchase other necessities. The result is immiseration: growing stress, unhappiness, and discontent.
The solution is simple: planning should favor affordable over expensive modes and compact development over sprawl. This is not to suggest that automobile travel is bad and should be eliminated. Many people are justifiably proud of being able to afford a nice car, and automobiles are the most efficient option for some trips. However, automobile travel requires far more resources and is far more expensive than other modes, typically by an order of magnitude, so true affordability requires an efficient, multimodal transportation system that allows travelers to choose the options that truly reflect their needs and preferences.
Affordability requires a new economic paradigm; rather than trying to increase incomes or subsidies we need to increase affordability and efficiency so households can satisfy their basic needs consuming fewer resources and spending less money. Our planning should be guided by a new goal: how can we help families be poor but happy.”
I share this article because it provides a more complete narrative and assessment than those just focusing on transport. Home choice locations and affordable housing are part of the equation. Looking at transport alone can be myopic and leads us to think it is the only problem to solve.
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Caught (up) in traffic 