Ingat sa pagmamaneho!

I visited my aunts and grandma in Sta Cruz this evening. The trip going there was uneventful, and I'm glad that the road repair being done in Pila was finished. The trip home, however, was a different story.

The first accident was in Brgy. Anos, Los Banos. Two motorcycles looked like they were involved in a head-on collision, and were left in the middle of the road. The accident must have happened just a few minutes before I drove past it because the crowd was just starting to grow, and people were picking items that were thrown off the motorbikes. I hope that no one was seriously hurt in this case because people are required to wear helmets, and this rule is being enforced quite strictly in Los Banos.

The second accident was located just before Brgy. Halang, Calamba City (northbound), right across the intersection going to Colegio de San Juan de Letran. A car and a motorbike were involved. Apparently, the car was negotiating a turn towards the gas station when it collided with the motorcycle (which got stuck on the car's front right tire) at the outer northbound lane. There were police officers in the scene, so it appears that the accident happened earlier. I hope that the motorbike driver wasn't badly hurt because in Calamba, the traffic enforcers don't seem to apply the helmet rule as consistently as in Los Banos, judging by all the people on motorbikes without helmets.

With motorbikes increasingly becoming the mode of private transportation due to their more affordable prices, I hope that owners would consider purchasing the appropriate safety equipment: helmets, high-visibility clothing (the fluorescent ones), and protection for their chests, backs and limbs. Plus, since it's more dangerous to drive at night (even with a car), motorcycle drivers and passengers would be safer if they were more visible: functional headlamps, taillights, and fluorescent clothing would help other commuters see motorcycles in the dark.