CE 198 – Undergraduate Research Program in Civil Engineering 22 March 2006

Final Presentation Major Field: Transportation Engineering

Initial Estimation of Emissions from Tricycles

in Quezon City
FEDERICO L. REYES and RICHARD G. VILLAMORA
B.S. Civil Engineering Program
Department of Civil Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman
E-mail: federico.reyes@up.edu.ph, chard03a@yahoo.com

Advisers:
Dr. Karl N. Vergel
Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman
Manuel Jose D. Camagay
University Extension Associate, National Center for Transportation Studies, University of the Philippines Diliman

Abstract: Tricycles are three-wheeled motorcycles with an attached sidecar, which are used as a mode of transportation in
the Philippines especially for urban areas. In year 2004, about 290,850 tricycles were registered in Metro Manila.
Tricycles are significant source of pollution (CO, HC, NOx and PM10) that affects individuals and the environment. Using
the methodology of the emissions inventory of the Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) by using the travel
information from the interview of tricycle drivers yielded emissions 3.5% lower than the DENR-EMB estimate. Through
actual field survey using GPS, results demonstrated big discrepancy compared with the 2 other methods. The estimated
emissions of tricycles from the field survey indicated a 45-48% variation due to the total travel distance of the tricycle
which is estimated to be about 22,373.5 km/year, that is almost twice the distance estimated by the two other estimates.

1. INTRODUCTION emissions from tricycles. In 2002, the Land

1.1 Background
Air pollution is a major public health issue. Poor air
quality leads to ill health and death, especially for the
most vulnerable social groups such as the drivers,
commuters, vendors, children and the elderly.
According to the World Health Organization annual
guidelines for air quality standards, Metro Manila air
shed is one of the five dirties and most polluted in the
world. People die or suffer serious health problems,
including respiratory, pulmonary and cardiovascular
diseases and cancer annually.
Tricycles are basically motorcycles with attached
sidecars. The engine can be two or four stroke with
displacement ranging from 100 cc, 125 cc, 150 cc,
and 175 cc (Garcia, 1995). The pollutants in tricycle
emissions include carbon monoxide (CO),
hydrocarbons (HC), nitrogen oxides (NOx), volatile
organic compounds (VOC’s), and suspended
particulate matter (SPM)(Abuzo, 2005).
Tricycles, numbering from 180,000 to 200,000 units
in Metro Manila, contribute considerably to increased
environmental conducted on tricycle emissions
indicated average hydrocarbon releases at 6,000 ppm
(parts per million), which is 10 tomes more than the
tolerable standard for cars. Preventing and reducing
pollution from tricycles is therefore a major challenge
for improving the air quality in Metro Manila. There
had been recent studies by University of the
Philippines National Center for Transportation
Studies (UP-NCTS) on tricycle emissions but there
have been few studies that quantified the total
Transportation Office (LTO), estimated that
motorcycles in the Philippines ranged between
900,000 to 1,100,000, where 70% are tricycles that
used 2-stroke engines and 25% were from Metro
Manila (211,000-registered tricycle units).
The legal framework that currently governs air
quality management in the Philippines is the Clean
Air Act of 1999 (also known as RA No. 8749). The
Act envisions maintaining ambient air quality that is
within the guideline values conducive to public
health, safety, and welfare, and the reduction of air
pollutants by minimizing the emissions from area,
stationary, and mobile sources as well as improving
fuel quality. The Environmental Management Bureau
(EMB) of the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (DENR), issued emission
standards on HC for 2-stroke and 4-stroke tricycles,
which is 7,800 ppm for certain urban centers and
10,000 ppm for rural areas since June 2003. Also,
according to the Act, tricycles registered before
January 1, 2003 should not emit CO more than 6% of
the engines total exhaust volume during idle state.
Tricycles registered in or after January 1, 2003 should
not release CO more 4.5% of the engines total-
exhaust volume during inoperative state.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Vehicular emissions, particularly from tricycles, are a
critical concern for Metro Manila. Being a principal
source of air pollutants, it is important to understand
tricycles better and implement suitable pollution
prevention and control measures. The lack of up-to-
date inventory on tricycle emissions hinders efforts to

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respond to tricycle pollution more effectively. running exhaust emission. This study did not consider
Collecting these data (the types and quantities of calculation of emissions for idle condition.
tricycle pollutants released within a specified location
and time) and putting them together into a complete 1.6 Tricycles and Emissions
and current inventory is the main thrust of this study.
Reports and related publications dealing on vehicular
This study hopes to contribute in clearing up Metro emissions indicate the urgency of implementing
Manila’s polluted air shed by developing a tool (the pollution-mitigating measures if urban centers like
model inventory for tricycle emissions) that can guide Metro Manila are to achieve a clean air endangers
the authorities in coming up with sound air quality public health as well as the environment and
planning and program. economy. A study conducted by the Environmental
Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) of the
1.3 Objective Department of Environment and Natural Resources
indicated that tricycles, given their huge numbers
The main purpose of the study is to provide initial deeply impact air quality. Key pollutants from
estimation of the 2004 total emissions from tricycles tricycles include hydrocarbons (HC), carbon
in Quezon City. monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and
particulate matter (PM10). In 2002, the World Bank
1.4 Significance of the Study warned that urban air pollution in the Philippines was
causing an estimated 2,000 premature deaths, 9,000
This research paper seeks to contribute to the ongoing cases of chronic bronchitis, and 51 million respiratory
multi-sectoral initiative to address Metro Manila’s cases.
worsening air pollution from mobile sources,
particularly from tricycles operating in the
300000
metropolis. The emission inventory contains relevant
information that can guide other incoming studies
number of registered tricycles
250000
concerned about tricycles in improving air quality 200000
within Metro Manila. The data that will be generated
from this project will be useful in strengthening 150000
current and future responses to improve air quality in 100000
Metro Manila, particularly in the monitoring and
50000
enforcement emission standards for tricycles.
0
1.5 Scope and Limitations 1980 1983 1986 1989 1992 1995 1998 2001 2004
years

The study focuses on tricycle emissions in Quezon

City. All computations will be based on available Figure 1. Growth of Registered
emission factor data. The study focuses on criteria air Motorcycles/Tricycles in
pollutants (HC, CO, NOx, and PM10,) emitted by Metro Manila Region, 1980-2004
tricycles within Metro Manila. Also, the study will (Source: Land Transportation Office)
primarily rely on best available data from the
government, industry, academic, and other existing The World Health Organization (WHO, 2000)
sources designated that tricycle pollution is determined by a
mixture of factors, such as engine type (2-stroke, 4-
A report cited the need to closely examine and stroke), fuel type, purity of lubricants and additives,
quantify these pollutants by way of conducting an and the regularity of maintenance. Studies point that
emission inventory, which will form the basis for a 2-stroke tricycles are relatively more polluting
sound air quality planning and management (,). The compared to 4-stroke tricycles due to the latter’s
emission inventory is a record of the emission inability to burn fuel efficiently thus resulting to
sources, and the classes and quantities of pollutants smoke and emissions.
generated within a particular area and timeline.
Table 1. Running Exhaust Emission Factors by
The inventory area is Quezon City, one of the cities Vehicle Type (in g/km)
in Metro Manila where there is profound number of vehicle type CO HC NOx PM10
registered tricycles contributing to pollution. It covers cars 49.50 6.00 2.70 0.099
a total land area of 166.2 square kilometers and utility ehicle 60.00 8.00 3.00 0.119
divided into 5 districts. It consists of 148 total buses 36.24 36.24 3.93 0.048
tricycle-operator driver associations (TODAs) thus trucks 36.24 1.68 3.93 0.048
producing 20,568 registered tricycles. tricycles 26.00 18.60 0.20 1.990
(Source: Vehicle Emissions Control Project, ADB, 1992)
For the computation of the initial estimation of
tricycle emissions, the study considered only the

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2. METHOD FOR ESTIMATION OF
EMISSIONS FROM TRICYCLES
The study considered the emissions inventory method
used by the Environmental Management Bureau
(EMB, 1990) in estimating tricycle emissions. The
data sources are the following: personal interview
with the tricycle drivers and actual or field survey
using global positioning system (GPS) device on the
operation of tricycle in a typical day. The area of the
study chosen was Quezon City, Philippines since it
has one of the highest numbers of registered tricycles
in Metro Manila.
The first type refers to interview with tricycle drivers
regarding their normal operation, including their
estimates in some parameters needed in this research.
The second type pertains to direct involvement of the
surveyors using GPS device to measure and get the
necessary data. This means actual riding on the
tricycle for the whole day chasing another tricycle,
which is operating in its normal everyday condition.
Two types of data are used to estimate the total
emissions from tricycles in a year.
The study uses two-and four-stroke in-use tricycles
for the interview and actual survey to develop
emissions estimation. The interview was conducted in
different TODAs in Quezon City. The drivers were
asked some questions about things regarding their
daily operations. This was done to record their daily
operation, including their estimates in number of trips
per day, number of working days in a week, number
of trips in a day, and the distance traveled in a trip.
For the actual survey using GPS, the data were
gathered at the instant the chosen tricycle started its
operation in a day. It began from early in the morning
up to evening. It involves monitoring of the route
traveled by tricycles, number of passengers, and the
distance in each trip for a typical day. The variable
distance per trip was taken when the passengers ride
until they alight the tricycle, while the variable total
distance in a day was the summation of all the
distances traveled per trip and all the distance
traveled during the time when the drivers wait for the
passengers and pushes their tricycles until the start of
the line.
On the other hand, the analysis of the collected data
was patterned after the methodology used by the
DENR-EMB for computing the total emissions. The
parameter, emission factor, was adopted from the
ADB Vehicular Emissions Control Planning (VECP)
Project in 1992.
E = N * D * EF (1)
where
E = total emissions (g/yr)
N = number of registered tricycles
D = distance traveled (km/tricycle/yr)
EF = emission factor (g/km)
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3. ESTIMATION OF TRAVEL DISTANCE AND
EMISSIONS FROM TRICYCLES
3.1 Interview of Tricycle Drivers
Using the data from the interview of tricycle drivers
illustrated a 3.52% difference compared to the
methodology used by the DENR-EMB. The result
showed that emissions according to the interview are
lesser compare to the results obtained by the DENR-
EMB. This is because of the estimated total distance
traveled. The EMB used a constant value of 12,000
km/tricycle/year while the distance based on the
interview arrived at 11,592.42 km/tricycle/year. The
actual sample size taken for the entire population of
the tricycles in Quezon, City is 131. Based on the
statement of the tricycle drivers, the study arrived at
the average distance per trip (1.6 km), average days
per week (6.33) and then converted it to total distance
traveled by a tricycle in a whole year.
The total number of registered tricycles came from
Tricycle Regulatory Unit (TRU) of Quezon, City.
This parameter together with the total distance
traveled by tricycles in a year, were used to obtain the
total emissions in a year. Table 2 and 3 show the
result.
Table 2. Tricycle Travel Information from
Interview of Drivers
average days/ week 6.33
average trips/day 22
average distance in km/trip 1.6
3.2 Field Survey Using Global Positioning System
(GPS)
The result through field survey method showed a
significant difference with the activity data used by
the DENR-EMB and the interview method. Pollutant
emissions from tricycle from the direct survey are
44.88-48.40 percent higher than the other two
methods, (Table 4). This arrived at a total distance of
22,373.5 km/tricycle/year, which appears almost
double the distance estimated by the other two.
Relative to the interview method, the direct survey
using GPS is more accurate since actual distance
traveled could be recorded directly. On the other
hand, the interview data are based only to the
statement of the drivers, which are less accurate.
The typical route of the tricycle is detected by the
GPS and by actual tracing while riding on the hired
tricycle and chasing the arbitrarily chosen tricycle
having its normal daily procedure.
Table 3. Tricycle Travel Information from
Field Survey Using GPS
average days/ week 6.3333
average trips/day 55
average distance in km/trip 1.29
It is apparent in Table 4 the big difference of the REFERENCES
obtained estimated emissions of tricycles in various 1. Abuzo, Anabel A. (2005) Development of Drive Cycle and
methods. Referring to the CO estimates using the Emission Models for In-Use Tricycles in Metro Manila, May
methodology of the DENR-EMB and interview, as an 2005.
example, tricycle was determined to be emitting 2. Camagay, Manuel Jose D. (2005) Development of Policy
Instruments for Emissions Standards Compliance of Tricycles
6,417.22 and 6,199.28 tons a year, respectively. 3. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)
While the result of the actual field survey using GPS and Environment Management Bureau (EMB), RA 8749: The
showed very large amount of 12,436.11 tons CO per Philippine Clean Air Act, Implementing Rules and
year. This result is the same with the HC, NOx and Regulations, Philippine Clean Air Act, 1999
4. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, No
PM10 where the field survey illustrated great Suspension of Clean Air Act, January 2004.
discrepancy to other estimates. 5. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, The Air
We Breathe, 2003.
Table 4. Estimates of Tricycle Emissions in 6. Department of Environment and Natural Resources,
Dialogues with Tricycle Sector on Clean Air Act, January
Quezon City, 2004 (tons/year) 2004.
Pollutant DENR- Driver Field 7. Environment Management Bureau (2003), 2002 National Air
EMB Interview Survey Quality Status Report, December 2003.
(GPS) 8. Llorito, D.L. (2003) The Manila Times, No Quick Fix to
Problem of Tricycle Emissions, January 2003.
CO 6,417.22 6,199.28 12,436.11 9. Shah, Jitendra and Harshadeep, N. (2001) Urban Pollution
HC 4,590.78 4,434.89 8,896.60 from Two-Stroke Engine Vehicles in Asia, Technical and
NOx 49.36 47.687 95.66 Policy Options.
10. UCAN (2004) World Mission, Tricycle Drivers’ Livelihood
PM10 491.16 474.46 951.84 Threatened: Paying the Price, June 2004
11. Asian Development Bank, Vehicle Emission Control Project
in Asia, 1992.
4. CONCLUSIONS 12. USAID-USAEP (2005), Development of HC and CO
Emission Standards for Motorcycles and Tricycles,
September 2005.
An emissions estimate was developed to quantify air
pollutants from tricycles in Quezon City. Emissions
using vehicle activity data of the DENR-EMB and
interview with the drivers were almost the same while
the emissions using vehicle activity data from the
field survey using GPS was significantly higher
compared with the two other estimates.

The distance traveled by a tricycle in a year is a major

factor in the emissions calculation. As the distance
traveled increases, the amount of pollutants emissions
also increases. The methodology of DENR-EMB
estimated a 12,000 km/yr distance that differs only by
small amount with the interview method obtaining an
11,592.47 km in a year. Meanwhile, the method
using GPS yielded an estimate of 22,372.50 km/year
which is almost 50% higher compared to other
activity parameters.

5. RECOMMENDATIONS

The study relied on the methodology used in the 1990

emissions inventory conducted by the DENR-EMB.
It is advisable to develop a more detailed method in
calculating emissions. This did not involve
calculation of tricycle emissions for idle conditions, it
would be better to consider the condition of the
tricycles during the time they are on the terminal
waiting for the passengers. It is recommended to take
note whether the tricycle engine is turned on or off
while the driver pushes the unit along the queue until
it becomes occupied. It is also better that a bigger
sample size and wide coverage area be considered to
improve data quality.