On reducing vehicle travel
This Sunday, I am sharing this article on the reduction of excess vehicle travel. I noted the use of the word ‘excess’ here, which somewhat distinguishes what is excess from what is necessary vehicle (or car) use.
Litman, T. (September 8, 2023) “How to reduce excess vehicle travel,” Planetizen, https://www.planetizen.com/blogs/125445-how-reduce-excess-vehicle-travel?utm_source=Planetizen+Updates&utm_campaign=b3ced8c873-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_08_09_05_38_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-6cce27a957-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D&mc_cid=b3ced8c873&mc_eid=9ccfe464b1 [Last accessed: 9/17/2023]
To quote from the article:
“Too often, practitioners undercount and undervalue slower but more affordable, inclusive, and resource-efficient modes such as walking, bicycling, and public transit. This contributes to the self-reinforcing cycle of automobile dependency and sprawl, illustrated below. We have an opportunity to break this cycle by recognizing the unique and important roles that walking, bicycling, and public transit can play in an efficient and equitable transportation system, and the cost efficiency of vehicle travel reduction policies. Telework can help, but only if implemented as part of an integrated program to create a more diverse, efficient and equitable transportation system.”
There is a lot you can pick up from this article, which sheds a light of hope towards addressing the most pressing issues particularly for our daily commutes. Litman is always clear and evidence-based for his discussions. His arguments are very persuasive if only decision-makers are not resistant to the facts about transport.
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Inflight meals onboard AirAsia flight MNL-KUL
Airline food is probably among the most maligned among meals. You’ve probably read or heard about complaints on meals served on board aircraft; especially those on Economy Class or coach. You have to be in Business Class or First Class to be served good meals or sets. If you are not the picky kind, then you will likely find the simply joys with the meals served on low cost carriers. These are usually selected and paid for in advance though you can also order in-flight assuming they carry all those items on their menu. Here are some items with AirAsia’s Santan:
Promotion of in-flight meals on AirAsia
The Chicken Rending and Vegetable Curry meals look good on paper.
So are the Chicken Biryani and Vegetable Biryani meals.
The Chicken Rice and Thai Basil Chicken dishes are also familiar to me. I wondered if the airline got these right and if they would be satisfying to passengers choosing these on-board or perhaps pre-ordering them.
Nasi Lemak sounded familiar and was perhaps something we tasted when we were still residing in Singapore.
There’s a vegetarian or plant-based version of this dish.
I settled for something familiar and enjoyable to me – Chicken Satay
The rice was curiously prepared and served similar to the ‘puso’ found in the Visayan and Mindanao provinces of the Philippines.
To cut the story short, I enjoyed my simple meal on-board AirAsia. I would dare say that I found my meals on this airline better than what I have eaten on-board Cebu Pacific. The meals also were better than what we recently had on board Philippine Airlines. That says a lot considering PAL is a full service airline. Of course, the meals on board Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways are would be tops on my list even in Economy Class.
Something I wanted to write about is my take on airline food over the years. I have a good memory of my first airline meals on board PAL in the 1970s. And I have had my fair share of various airline meals including First and Business Class meals on various airlines. That should be fun to write about!
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First impressions of a country or city – Kuala Lumpur
I recently traveled to Malaysia and just making this quick post of first impressions based on one of its gateways – Kuala Lumpur International Airport. This was not my first trip to Malaysia as I traveled there before but by land and from Singapore (we were residing in Singapore). That time, I traveled to Melaka. Here are photos when we arrived in KLIA last weekend.
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| A view of KLIA Terminal 2 as our plane approached to land |
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| Two towers – air traffic control towers, that is. The closer one is Terminal 2’s while the one at the distance is Terminal 1. |
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| A view of Terminal 2 as our plane taxied to the terminal |
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| Terminal 2 is designated for low cost carriers, and is the hub of AirAsia. This terminal replaced the low cost carrier terminal at KLIA, similar to what also happened in Changi. |
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| Our plane berthed at the satellite building. This meant we had to walk to the bridge to cross to the main Terminal 2 building. The two buildings are not served by a transit system like KLIA Terminal 1 (or HKIA or Changi, for example). |
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| The view of our plane as we crossed on the bridge to the main terminal building. |
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| AirAsia planes lined up along one of wings of the satellite building. Each wing is essentially a long pier. |
I was impressed by how large and spacious Terminal 2 is. It is designed, after all, to serve the millions of travelers going through this gateway in what is Southeast Asia’s most visited country for tourists. I just thought though that the moving walkways seemed to be an afterthought and that it was a long walk (healthy though) for many people between the main and satellite buildings. Terminal 2 though is located far from Terminal 1 so transport is required in case you need to transfer from one terminal to the other. It is not as seamless as Changi, for example. Still KLIA is much better than many capital city airports that I’ve been to though there is room for improvements.
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Another look at the Mactan Cebu International Airport Terminal 1 – Part 3
This is the conclusion to the series on MCIA Terminal 1. Here I am sharing more photos of the shops and also include photos of what used to be the old terminal 1 boarding gates areas that have now been completely renovated.
Electronics shop at the MCIA Terminal 1
There’s a sports bar at Terminal 1
There’s a Kultura shop at the Terminal 1. Kultura is SM’s
Liquors and wines store at the terminal – I was not able to inquire if these can be duty free considering the people including foreign tourists who may avail of this.
Passengers seated along a row of restaurants at the old Terminal 1 domestic wing. This area used to be crowded with so many chairs that they tried to fit in the area.
Familiar brands Dunkin’ Donuts and Bo’s Coffee are there. There are also vending machines for drinks for the more straightforward purchases.
The pre-departure area of the old T1 domestic wing now appears more spacious.
Corridor to the old T1 domestic wing now full of shops
More on airports soon!
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Musings on rainy day commutes
I sympathize with a lot of people whose activities were disrupted by the inclement weather the past days. The rains from the other night and today resulted in floods around Metro Manila and Rizal (where I live). The forecast of more rains during the past days made government suspend classes at all levels for both public and private schools. However, many and particularly students have already traveled to their schools as some announcements came late or not early enough for those who usually leave home early to avoid the usual traffic congestion around schools.
I myself used to leave our home early to go to school. As I took public transportation to the university, I had to leave before 6:00 AM (even earlier if it was raining) to be able to get a jeepney ride and have a comfortable trip (shorter travel time than when I leave later in the morning). I had one transfer at what used to be the K-Mart terminal. Both legs of the trip were via jeepneys. I recall silently cursing the guards at Ateneo for prioritizing what seemed to be an infinite number of cars entering and exiting that university via their Gates 2 and 3. At the time, Ateneo still operated the blue school buses and you can see few students on those buses. I observed already then that most of their students probably had their own vehicles to take them to school. Once past the gauntlet of Ateneo and Miriam (which was Maryknoll before), traffic was smoother. And to think that there was no C.P. Garcia yet and Katipunan at the UP Diliman and MWSS areas was not as wide as it is now. The old Katipunan section was basically a two lane road with UP on one side and MWSS on the other. What is now a center island with large acacia trees used to be the frontage of MWSS. UP’s walls were lined with eateries and small stores catering to students and workers.
My commutes during the wet season can be quite difficult as you can’t simply hang on to the jeepney (at the back) when it’s pouring. And when the weather’s particularly bad, there were flooding along my route, not to mention where I resided. I also remember wading in floodwaters along Katipunan (yes, there were floods along Katipunan before) because the road was impassable to vehicles and the only way to get home was to walk from UP to Aurora Boulevard. Our home in Cainta was often flooded during typhoons, and I also waded in floodwaters along portions of Felix/Imelda Avenue an in our village. The flood experiences probably deserve separate articles here and I will share some stories as soon as I can organize my thoughts and memories of these. Of course, I will relate these to transportation as there were lots I learned from these experiences. The frustration though is that it seems we have yet to do in order to address climate’s and weather’s impacts on transportation.
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On the benefits of walkable communities to pregnant women
I break the series on MCIA Terminal 1 to share this interesting article relating walkable communities to healthier pregnancies:
To quote from the article:
“The study, published in the journal of Economics and Human Biology, found that expectant mothers living in walkable counties tend to engage in more walking and exercise and have fewer issues with premature births, low birth weight, gestational diabetes and hypertension. Walking is often recommended as a safer, more moderate activity for pregnant women, so the authors reasoned that living in a more walkable area could have health benefits for them.”
If you’re interested in the details of the study referred to in the article, here is the link to the paper entitled “You’ll never walk alone – the effects of walkability on pregnancy behaviors and outcomes” in the journal Economics & Human Biology:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2023.101269
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Another look at the refurbished Mactan International Airport Terminal 1 – Part 2
In this part of the series, I am sharing photos of the various shops and eating options at the MCIA Terminal 1.
A familiar store at airports is Islands Souvenirs. I think I have an Island Souvenir shirt for most of the cities I’ve traveled to in the country. It is a go-to store for souvenir items, especially shirts.
There are many kiosks along the corridors leading to the gates. Some sell souvenir items. Others gadgets and accessories. There are even a couple marketing real estate in Cebu.
A look inside the Islands Souvenirs shop shows many items to choose from including shirts, bags, caps, mugs and magnets.
I think this store was what used to be a Cocoa Tree store at the terminal. It still sells pretty much the same products (mainly chocolates).
There is a nice food court at Terminal 1. You have many choices for eating or drinking. And I noticed the prices are also not as expensive as perceived of Philippine airport food and drinks.
The food court is spacious and people can just stay here for refreshments while waiting for their flights to board.
Aside from Filipino food, there’s Italian and Japanese themed stalls at the food court.
I think my favorite there is The Bakery, which offers sandwiches, pastries and various breads. They also have pasta for those wanting a heavier meal before their flights.
There’s a WHSmith store at Terminal 1. The photo also shows massage chairs and a local souvenir shop, District Fiesta.
District Fiesta offers local products including handicrafts like bags, purses, decors, etc.
More in Part 3, coming soon!
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Another look at the refurbished Mactan Cebu International Airport Terminal 1 – Part 1
We were recently in Cebu City and I just had to take some new photos; this time to feature Terminal 1 of Mactan Cebu International Airport. Here are some photos taken at the departure area.
Entrance towards the check-in counters. There is no security machine here and but there is a routine check of travel documents of passengers. There are weighing scales for luggage so passengers can check if they are over their limits and still have an opportunity (and the space) to reconfigure.
PAL’s check-in counters at MCIA Terminal 1
PAL also now has online check-in machines at the airport. Previously, only Cebu Pacific had these machines. There is only one though unlike Ceb Pac’s multiple machines.
Check-in counters for Air Asia Philippines
Travel tax counter at the terminal
A view of the terminal lobby from the corridor leading to our gate at the other end of Terminal 1.
Final security check before the pre-departure areas. MCIA now uses modern scanners for screening both bags and passengers. Shoes and belts are among the items they require you to remove from yourself. They also ask you to remove notebook computers to place them on your tray that goes through the machines. You may not remove your watch from your wrist.
More photos in Part 2 coming soon!
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Another look at home location choices
I recently shared an article showing the results of a survey conducted in the US. That survey appears to show that Americans prefer sprawl. But that may be due to many factors including political leanings that are actually mentioned in the article. I share another article that appears to be a reaction to the first one.
Lewyn, M. (August 14, 2023) “Do Americans Really Prefer Sprawl?” Planetizen, https://www.planetizen.com/blogs/125112-do-americans-really-prefer-sprawl?utm_source=newswire&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news-08142023&mc_cid=cd3b2e2ba5&mc_eid=9ccfe464b1 [Last accessed: 8/16/2023]
To quote from the article:
“Why do these surveys yield such drastically different results? The Pew survey notes that 3/4 of rural respondents favor the less walkable alternative; thus, that survey was apparently designed to include a representative sample of Americans, including rural Americans who typically do live in very spread-out environments. It seems to me quite natural that rural Americans would prefer rural lifestyles.
But once rural respondents are excluded, the balance between sprawl and walkable communities in the Pew survey becomes almost a toss-up. 57 percent of urban respondents refer houses with smaller yards and more walkability, and an almost-equal percentage of suburban respondents prefer the opposite.”
Again, I wonder what would be the outcomes if a similar survey were done in the Philippines. Will it reveal preferences for single detached homes rather than condos? Who will prefer the latter or the former? What could be the factors affecting home location choices in the Philippines? Cost is definitely a major factor. Commuting times perhaps and even commuting costs? But how do people weigh these factors? And what other influences are there to the decisions to purchase homes?
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Changes in NAIA Terminal 2
We recently traveled via NAIA’s Terminal 2. T2 used to be for Philippine Airlines (PAL) only but recently Air Asia’s domestic flights have been reassigned to use T2 as well. Another airline, Royal Air, also now uses T2 for its domestic flights. Meanwhile, PAL’s international flights now use Terminal 1. Only recently did I notice that PAL now has the north wing of T2 for its domestic flights while Air Asia and Royal Air use the south wing. Previously, PAL’s international flights were on the north wing and domestic flights were at the south wing. Gone are immigration counters though customs equipment and still at the north wing arrival area near the baggage claim carousels.
The Terminal 2 North Wing was previously for PAL international flights only.
The north wing does not serve all of PAL’s domestic flights so it does not appear to be congested. Only flights to the major domestic destinations go through here such as those between Manila and Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Bacolod or Cagayan De Oro. I seem to have heard a boarding call for PAL’s Caticlan bound flights at T2, too.
The Duty Free Shops are still here but charge tax for those not qualified for duty free purchases.
There’s a Cafe France at the north wing. There are no other familiar brand cafe choices there.
Antigen self test vending machine at the terminal
At the south end of the North Wing is the smoking area and a connection to the South Wing pre-departure lounge. There is also a long desk for those who want to work while waiting for their flights.
I was not able to go to the South Wing and it would be interesting to see what is there and how the area is laid out (is there something different now that Air Asia and Royal Air uses the terminal?) I hope to get that chance soon so I can also take some photos that I can share here.
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Caught (up) in traffic 