Bicycle sales boom amid MECQ in Metro Manila

Customers line up at a bike shop on Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on May 25, 2020. Tina Panganiban-Perez

Some bicycle stores in Metro Manila are seeing an increase in sales as many in the national capital region have returned to work while transportation options remain limited. 

Shop owner Marilou Roquero told GMA News that sales have jumped almost tenfold when the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) transitioned to a modified version (MECQ) that eased some restrictions.

However, as demand for bicycles increased, so have the price—not just of the bikes, but also of spare parts.

“Grabe talaga 'yung demand ngayon ng mountain bike. Pagkatapos shortage po talaga tayo ng mga units ngayon. Talagang hirap na rin po kami sa spare parts,” Roquero said.

“Yung prices ho namin, medyo nag-increase since walang delivery. Transportify yung ginagamit namin. Extra charge din yon. Saka 'yung piyesa, talagang tumaas din. Yung manufacturer, wala pa po. Galing lang 'yan sa ibang tindahan. Ilang pasa-pasa na nangyari kaya tumaas ang ating presyo,” she addrd.

Roquero said that customers prefer bikes over other modes of transportation because they are cheaper.

“Mas mura. Wala nang gasolina. Yung motor ngayon, sitahin din po kasi,” she added.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), meanwhile, has set up a bike lane on a segment of EDSA from the corner of Whiteplains Avenue to the corner of Col. Bonny Serrano Avenue as part of a dry run for a possible new traffic scheme in the "new normal" of the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier this month, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said two-wheel vehicles will play an important role in the "new normal." — BM, GMA News