In densely populated urbanized cities like Metro Manila, the outpour of vehicles on the road is one of the leading causes of traffic congestion. With the rising population, public transportation is not enough to cater to all commuters. In 2019, the number of people living in urban areas was approximately 51 million. The urban population accounted for almost half of the total inhabitants within the Philippines.
Commuters spend a minimum of one and a half to two hours on the road. With the public transportation inflow of passengers, especially during rush hour, several consumers opt to purchase their vehicles despite the traffic congestion in the Philippines. As of the first quarter of 2019, light commercial vehicles and passenger cars were among the highest sold type of automobile cars in the country. Notably, what was more popular in the Philippine automotive market were complete built-up vehicles (CBU) imported from several countries in the Asia Pacific region. On average, the cost of cars outside the Philippines was between 18 to 24 percent cheaper than locally produced vehicles. Significantly, locally produced vehicles cannot compete with CBU imported vehicles as tariffs imposed on traded products brought by the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), where the Philippine is a member country, falls from zero to five percent only.
