Whilst it has been said that the national
transport in Thailand is a 125 cc motorcycle, the ideal
transport for a family of five; the most ubiquitous form of
transport is the ‘song taew’ or baht bus. These converted
pickups come in many guises all over Thailand, but all follow
much of the same style. Two rows of seats in the back, and a
roof. As a public ‘bus’ it works reasonable well, and
other than the fact that there are ten times too many of them,
the system is ok.
Jeepney
In the Philippines, the equivalent is the
‘Jeepney’, which has a much more interesting history than
the ‘song taew’. The fascination of the Jeepney comes in
the utilization of vehicles and engines that were already
existing, and adapting them to the requirements of the time.
Today’s Jeepneys are vehicles that can trace their roots,
some 50 plus years later.
Most people are aware that the Jeepney was
derived from the American Jeep, itself a most interesting
development. These were not, as again popular ‘wisdom’
would suggest, designed by Willy’s, but were first designed
and produced by Bantam Engineering in Detroit, the makers of
the American Austin Seven, and the first batch of these
‘Scout Cars’ rolled off the assembly lines in 1940. The
American government later had Willys and Ford also make these
vehicles to the Bantam design. The name ‘Jeep’ came later,
being a phonetic interpretation of G.P. (General Purpose)
vehicle, and allegedly coined by a lady journalist when being
shown the prototype, so never say that women writers don’t
know anything about the motor industry!
When General MacArthur said “I shall
return” he did not say anything about coming back to pick up
the Jeeps that the US government had left in Manila in 1945,
and in fairly short order, the ex-US Army military vehicles
were plying the streets of Manila, and the enterprising new
Filipino owners began using them as taxis, replacing the
horse-drawn ‘calesas’, painting them in bright colours to
alert passengers to the fact that this was a version of public
transport. This was the beginning.
To protect the drivers and passengers from
the sun, the Jeep grew a fixed roof. More seats became
necessary to give these diminutive taxis some economies of
scale. More bums on seats needed more seats for bums, and so
the original six seater ‘auto-calesa’ began to grow
appendages on the rear to get more people on board, until the
much longer 16 seater PUJ’s (Public Utility Jeep) became
commonplace.
As the Jeep began to mutate, it got its
name of ‘Jeepney’. It was no longer a modified ex-WWII
Jeep, but had become its own persona. It had also produced its
own motor industry, manufacturing and assembling these now
unique vehicles. Not only to manufacture, but to keep them
running, there was now an attendant vehicle repair industry,
and to satisfy the Filipino penchant for decoration and then
some, there was a parallel industry making the elaborate
accessories, such as the mandatory chrome-plated horses for
the bonnets of the new vehicles.
It did not end there. With the Filipinos
being the musicians of Asia, there needed to be a way of
giving these Jeepneys some music on the run, and the
auto-sound industry grew to encompass this important side of
the Jeepney story as well. Several hundred decibels of
distorted sound was the norm until a few years ago, but recent
legislation in Metro Manila has turned the volume down of
late.
So we have the Jeepney, still around in
2005, uniquely showing it origins from the Philippines,
described best by Valerio Nofuente. At the front of the
Jeepney, often right on top, is a plastic headdress verging on
a crown, with names like Jeepney King, Queen Leah, Super-Star
or one of the Jeepney body makers, such as Sarao Motors
written on it. At night, this will be festooned with blinking
lights, around some saint’s statue.
Between the visor and the windshield is
usually a plastic strip on which is written the route, such as
“Quiapo-Espana Extension,” or “Cubao-Quezon
Boulevard.” On the windshield are the last few years
accumulation of Land Transportation Commission stickers,
stickers from universities or from pilgrimages to Our Lady of
Peace and Good Voyage at Antipolo.
Between the bonnet and the windshield is
another bit of space that is usually dedicated to the name of
the jeep - the name of a child, grandchild or the owner, like
“Inang Petang,” “Noel-Rowena” - in large letters.
The bonnet is the special repository for
the Jeepney decorator. Here is at least one chrome horse in
memory of the horse drawn calesa. Along with the horses is
usually a forest of other decorations including aerials,
mirrors and numerous parking lights.
The grille can be copied from Ford, Toyota
or Mercedes Benz or made of steel bars in the image of the
original Jeeps, and will normally also have much decorative
work in the way of more lights. Even the bumper is another
item to carry more art-work as well as the number plate.
The side of the Jeepney will carry painted
rocket ships, Star Wars or Buck Rogers; jet fighters like
those of the Philippine Air Force’s Blue Diamonds, planets
in orbit, bursts of flame, landscapes, and girls names.
The steps have more slogans and welcoming
signs such as Watch Your Steps, Halina Baby (Let’s Go,
Baby), or Welcome Chicks or even Walang Sabit (The Driver Is
Unattached), or Wanted Wife 35-25-35.
The interior may include an altar, with its
image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, or of the Suffering
Christ. With fervour and ritual, the driver hangs a garland of
sampaguita or everlasting flowers near this altar (sometimes
on the rearview mirror), an offering somewhat pagan in spirit,
since in return God is expected to help him earn the day’s
bread.
Stuck to the windshield beside the cassette
player-recorder are stickers and printed inscription that
carry instructions such as Magbayad ng maaga nang di maabala
(Pay early so as not to cause delays); Barya po lamang sa
umaga (Only change please, in the morning); and to remind
passengers of the honour system of fare collection, God knows
Hudas (Judas) not pay.
While the international auto manufacturers
may build more practical people movers, a minibus (or a song
taew) does not have the mystique that is possessed by a
Jeepney. Over 50 years of tradition has been incorporated in
today’s Jeepney, something the minibus cannot claim. As is
often quoted, there are horses for courses, and the Jeepney
keeps his chrome plated and on the bonnet!
