Why Provincial Bus Speeds Should be Regulated

Yesterday's tragic multiple vehicular accident in Quezon province involving 3 passenger buses, 1 trailer truck and 4 other trucks causing 20 deaths reminds me why I have been hoping for provincial buses to regulate their speeds.  

There should be standard travel durations for provincial buses.

I have recently been shuttling the Manila-Bicol route more frequently the past months.  I have tried almost all buses from the cheapest to the more expensive ones in this route for almost 20 years now.  However, I have  noticed that the buses try to reach their destinations not with the safety and comfort of their passengers in mind.  

Image from Inquirer.net.

Accidents of multiple vehicles like this only happen when they are moving at speeds that will not afford ample time to avoid collisions.  I have even come to a conclusion after my most recent trip last week that there really are no bus companies exempted from this problem.  This makes it all the more difficult for land transportation passengers like me to make decisions when choosing which bus tickets to take.   No bus company seems to be an exception to the seemingly uncontrolled speeds of these provincial buses. The more expensive ones and even the one company I thought served their passengers better than others have recently had accidents also.

Comfort, safety and security should be a company and their drivers' primary concern over speed in reaching their target destination.  They must regulate themselves or else the LTFRB should set specific travel duration for provincial buses.