Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Jeepneys remain parked silent rows as drivers wait for their turn to ferry passengers at a terminal in Baclaran, Pasay City, on March 23, 2026. For the second consecutive week since fuel prices began their sharp ascent, drivers have largely abandoned active cruising in favor of the "pila" (queuing) system—a tactical shift to minimize fuel consumption and combat the relentless surge in diesel costs. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177433189996420260323-jeepney-driver-baclaran-terminal-queueing-JC5883.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Jeepneys remain parked silent rows as drivers wait for their turn to ferry passengers at a terminal in Baclaran, Pasay City, on March 23, 2026. For the second consecutive week since fuel prices began their sharp ascent, drivers have largely abandoned active cruising in favor of the &quot;pila&quot; (queuing) system—a tactical shift to minimize fuel consumption and combat the relentless surge in diesel costs. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>MANILA — The sun was not quite up as Eric Helera unlocked the doors of his jeepney, wiped down its two long passenger benches, and checked his brake fluid before another day ferrying Manila commuters.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/3/23/gas-diesel-up-again-doe-lists-latest-fuel-price-increases-0859">Gas, diesel up again: DOE lists latest fuel price increases</a></div><p>The makeshift minibus named Princess is part of a smoke-belching, colourfully decorated fleet that forms the backbone of a Philippine transportation sector being hammered by surging fuel prices driven by the US-Israeli war with Iran.</p><p>Like most jeepneys, Princess runs on diesel, the cost of which has hit historic highs in the archipelago nation since the partial closure of the Strait of Hormuz.</p><p>Helera, 43, is driving shorter routes but longer days in response, routinely working 18 hours to ensure he has something left over after buying fuel and covering &quot;the boundary&quot;, the amount he owes the jeepney&#x27;s owner each day.</p><p>&quot;The margins are really thin now because of the skyrocketing diesel prices,&quot; he told AFP while sipping instant coffee from a paper cup outside his neighborhood grocery.</p><p>&quot;Sometimes I earn less than 500 pesos (about $8) a day,&quot; he said of shifts that can stretch until midnight.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/spotlight/01/07/21/jeepney-modernization-road-paved-with-difficulties-debt-danger">Jeepney modernization: Road paved with difficulties, debt, danger</a></div><p>Before the Middle East war, he could comfortably clear the same amount by lunchtime.</p><p>&quot;There&#x27;s been a huge adjustment at home,&quot; he said of life in the two-story Manila house he shares with his wife, seven children, and two other families.</p><p>&quot;My children … need money for school projects and stuff like that, and we don&#x27;t have it now,&quot; Helera told AFP journalists who spent part of the day travelling with him.</p><p>A &quot;full breakfast with rice&quot; was now a luxury to be enjoyed on only top earning days, he said.</p><p>&quot;I need 10 passengers or more for each trip. Below that, and I don&#x27;t earn anything,&quot; he calculated, adding the jeepney ran at its full 16-person capacity only half a dozen times a day.</p><p>Fuel hikes he called the &quot;most severe&quot; he had ever seen had forced him to drop longer routes where the passenger load could not justify the cost of diesel.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>HIGHEST IN THE COUNTRY&#x27;S HISTORY</strong></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177433250918520260323-jeepney-driver-baclaran-terminal-queueing-JC5882.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Jeepneys remain parked silent rows as drivers wait for their turn to ferry passengers at a terminal in Baclaran, Pasay City, on March 23, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News<br/></span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>On Tuesday, the price jumped again by around 16 percent, with prices up to P134.30 per liter at some pumps, the highest in the country&#x27;s history.</p><p>Jeepney driver unions have been demanding fare increases to help cover the burden, with one last week organizing a &quot;strike&quot; that few drivers could afford to join.</p><p>A fare hike authorized by the country&#x27;s transport regulator, meanwhile, was quashed by President Ferdinand Marcos a day after it was announced.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/3/24/more-than-240-000-puv-drivers-to-receive-fuel-subsidy-0958">Gov&#x27;t rolls out fuel subsidy for PUV drivers</a></div><p>&quot;I&#x27;m on the side of the jeepney drivers,&quot; salesclerk Trixie Brumuela said of potentially pricier rides.</p><p>&quot;Fuel prices rose but fares didn&#x27;t, so they&#x27;re losing money,&quot; the 35-year-old told AFP outside one of Manila&#x27;s ubiquitous jeepney terminals, while conceding she was struggling to make ends meet herself.</p><p>&quot;I told myself to stop spending on anything apart from my basic needs. I resolved to stop buying other stuff,&quot; she said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;IT&#x27;S SAD&#x27;<br/></strong></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177433261120420260319-transport-strike-commuters-commonwealth-MT13.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Commuters wait for a ride along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on the first day of PISTON’s transport strike on Thursday, March 19, 2026. Fuel prices continue to rise, adding to the burden of drivers, workers, and daily commuters. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News<br/></span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>Near another terminal, college freshman Juliana Tonelete told AFP that while she sympathized with the plight of drivers, her own financial situation took priority.</p><p>&quot;I think their reaction is valid given higher pump prices, but as a commuter, as a student with a limited budget, it&#x27;s difficult,&quot; she said.</p><p>Helera said the cost of fuel had forced some fellow drivers to abandon the job entirely.</p><p>&quot;Some went back to their home provinces, others looked for other lines of work.... I&#x27;m also considering that option, because we no longer earn anything.&quot;</p><p>He worried his own options, however, were limited.</p><p>&quot;Maybe construction. I only went to high school.&quot;</p><p>And while a government cash handout expected on Wednesday -- the first for embattled jeepney drivers -- would be welcome, &quot;5,000 pesos … won&#x27;t carry you that far,&quot; Helera said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/3/24/doe-philippine-fuel-supply-enough-as-middle-east-war-enters-fourth-week-0956">Philippines has enough fuel inventory despite continued soaring prices, says energy chief</a></div><p>&quot;It&#x27;s sad,&quot; he added, as his jeepney slowly filled with evening commuters.</p><p>&quot;It feels as though you want to give up, but you also know you can&#x27;t surrender because you have a family.&quot;</p><p>Helera noted with a sigh that he had yet to reach the &quot;boundary&quot; after nearly 11 hours on the road.</p><p>&quot;It&#x27;s been a slow day,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;I&#x27;ll need to drive into the night.&quot;</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QChdYY1ELrM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RGvr8BFv0tc?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J2O3hqV6vvw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>On Tuesday, the price jumped again by around 16 percent, with prices up to P134.30 per liter at some pumps, the highest in the country's history.</p>

On Tuesday, the price jumped again by around 16 percent, with prices up to P134.30 per liter at some pumps, the highest in the country's history.

Manila's jeepney drivers struggle as Middle East war sends diesel cost soaring

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Manila's jeepney drivers struggle as Middle East war sends diesel cost soaring

Cecil Morella,

Agence France-Presse

Published March 24, 2026 02:01 PM PHT

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Updated March 24, 2026 02:10 PM PHT

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Manila

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