Traffic is a perennial problem in the metro, but sometimes, it’s also just a matter of giving way.
Session bassist Bolichie Suzara shared a picture of such a scenario on Facebook on Wednesday.
In the photo the former First Circle bassist shared, queues of vehicles in opposite directions at San Antonio Valley in Parañaque are seen on a two-lane road.
At the end of both queues are two vehicles about to make a turn, thereby blocking incoming traffic.
The picture previously appeared on the Facebook page “Ka Chill Ride PH” on Tuesday as uncredited. It was captioned, “Checkmate.”
The post was accompanied by an emoji of a face-with-open-eyes-and-hand-over mouth.
It has earned viral status, gaining more than 190,000 pure laughing reactions and 35,000 shares.
Some were amused, while others were disappointed with how the photo captured drivers’ frequent failure to give way to incoming vehicles.
“Nakakaproud talaga maging Pinoy!” a Facebook user commented with laughing-with-tears emojis.
“Driving requires a higher degree of common sense,” another online user wrote.
“Pinoy, best driver in the world,” a different Filipino commented.
“Ganyan ang pangyayari kung walang road courtesy. Kailangan sa mga kalsada na madaming intersection, laging ]mayroong] traffic enforcers na nakatutok,” a Facebook user said.
“Is this what we called [a] bottleneck in the streets? This is really what happens if drivers don’t have patience and a little bit of road courtesy….” another online user wrote with a grinning face emoji.
How about road courtesy?
Drivers entering main roads from side roads are expected to yield by stopping to check if there are no vehicles or pedestrians and then proceeding to move when it’s safe.
Those on the main road, meanwhile, must always be aware of vehicles or pedestrians approaching the intersection.
Pedestrians also take precedence, especially when a motorist approaches a pedestrian lane. Drivers must give way to them or risk causing an accident.
However, they must not jaywalk or cross the road without regard for approaching traffic.
Last Monday, a meme trended on local Reddit for featuring the reality of pedestrians in the country.
The post called out Filipino drivers for failing to give way to pedestrians on the road properly.
