What to do with Annoying Tricycle Drivers
I learned a lot from tricycle drivers here in City of San Fernando. In my trip to pick up my kids from school, I was cut by a private tricycle and the driver and passenger were laughing about their action, they were looking back to provoke me. I’m annoyed and heart beats faster than normal. Another instance on our way home, I am exiting an intersection and an incoming tricycle madly honked his horn. I got puzzled and at first I can’t understand why because I’m really confused with their “moves”.
If my memory serves me right, the last body number for tricycle franchise in our city is 1600-1700. At least that’s the total for public tricycles both active and inactive. I don’t have the updated figures but I’m guessing there are more than 2000 tricycle units around the city.
Most tricycle drivers are undisciplined, wild and disrespectful specially during peak hours. I realized they are racing with time to get more passengers but at the expense of other vehicles. The result is traffic. They can U-turn anytime they want, counter flow, park anywhere, load and unload, over charge you in fare and many more.
I know at least 5 public tricycle drivers and I try to talk to them if I have a chance, at least once a week. They are polite, honest and dependable. This is my way of connecting to them and getting direct feedback and opinion.
For this post, I will not magnify their mistakes and condemn all tricycle drivers.
Remember, we have to look for the positive side.
What to do?
- Be Considerate
Show some love and be kind. A lot of us are troubled by financial problems and some of those drivers are desperate to get that boundary completed. Their passengers might be suffering from diarrhea or needs to be in an emergency. Consider why they are rushing and consider the safety of their passengers. If your vehicle is big, don’t bully tricycles. Maybe your friend, relative, or close to you is the passenger and you never know. - Be Courteous
Some of them needs to learn about courtesy and the best way is to show them how it is done. Be an example and don’t belittle them and their ride. Let them pass and avoid enforcing your “right of way” and self-entitlement mentality. - Extend your Patience
We all need discipline and it’s a weakness of Filipinos. Annoying tricycle drivers are patience growers. Avoid honking you horn to show how mad you are. Be patient and wait a little longer. Sometimes it’s better to be late than be involved in an accident. The passenger might be a senior citizen who is a BFF of your grandparents so be patient. - Understand and don’t demand
Yes, it’s difficult to understand them unless you already tried driving a tricycle or at least talk to them about their hardships and struggles. Don’t be upset if it’s not in your favor. There will always be a good reason why they misbehave on the road. You can’t just go berserk or in beast mode and discipline them, let the police or law enforcers do their job. You can report them to authorities if you want, but avoid engaging in a road fight.
Appreciate the importance of tricycle drivers even if some of them are annoying. We need them during rainy days, go to market, cars are under repair or run to a short trip. We look and wish for them to arrive in the midst of a sunny day. We sometimes pray for them to arrive if we need express ride.
Avoid exaggerating the issue if a tricycle driver misbehaves. If we are annoyed, the problem is with us. We can’t control the situation but we can control our emotion, right? Be at peace and let them pass.
You want express ride? Get a tricycle and enjoy it.
Next time you are annoyed by a tricycle driver, you know what to do.
Bonus tip: Get a quality dashboard camera or dashcam.