Jeepney an ‘overdesigned toy’ with lots of useless parts

Jeepney drivers have always been complaining about the high price of diesel, which eats up a good portion of their earnings. Instead of blaming the oil companies and government for their miseries, why don’t they look for other ways to reduce their operating costs and thus increase their profits? One suggestion I would like to put forward is for them to reduce the weight of their vehicles.

I believe a good part of a passenger jeepney’s total weight is dead weight – lots of excess steel or iron which should not be there (e.g., horse figurines on top of the engine hood, decorations on the front, side and even on top of the vehicle’s body; and a host of other useless appendages that do not contribute to its roadworthiness.

Jeepney drivers do not realize that too much dead weight in their vehicles unnecessarily eats up a lot of diesel. It’s like carrying passengers all day and getting nothing in return – in other words, it’s like carrying non-paying passengers wherever they go.

I believe that the jeepney’s being “overweight” is due to its unscientific design, which could be a product of ignorance. The structural parts of the jeepney are oversized, hence it is overweight. Jeepneys are, in fact, “overdesigned toys.”

I wish somebody in the government will assist jeepney manufacturers to keep jeepney designs economical, practical and useful.
—JOE CAPARAS,
Fairview, Quezon City