Only a few have availed of the more than a week-old project allowing passengers to bring “folding” bikes onboard trains.

According to Ma. Kristina Cassion, Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) Public Relations Division officer- in-charge, only a daily average of six passengers have brought “folding” bikes each for the Monumento-Baclaran (Line) 1 and Santolan,Pasig-Recto, Manila (Line 2) systems since the project was started last November 8.

Cassion said the Bike On, Bike Off (Bike O2) project of the LRTA might still need more promotion to create awareness among passengers.

Advocates of bicycle-riding earlier urged government and private firms to provide bikes and shower facilities to their employees to encourage them to use bicycles and reduce dependence on oil-consuming and smoke-emitting motor vehicles.

The call was made by Jojo Gutierrez, president of the Padyak Society, even as he thanked offices which have already provided facilities for “bicycle rats.”

Padyak Society is an offshoot organization of the University of the Philippines’ Firefly Brigade, a non-governmental organization advocating the use of bicycle as a sustainable form of transportation that is cheap and environment-friendly.”

The bicycle-riding advocates said their idea is simple, “lesser cars mean less congestion and less harmful emission to the environment.”

“One less car, one less smoke belcher,” said Pio Fortuno, President of the UP Firefly Brigade, formed in 1999 to work for clean air and a habitable, people-friendly environment.

“Riding our bicycle to the LRT is a simple way of lessening our carbon footprint. Hopefully with eventual introduction of safe bicycle parking and access of regular bicycles, this project will truly take-off and be an instrumental climate change mitigation tool,” said Fortuno who uses his bicycle in going to work from Kamias, Quezon City to Pasay City.

“I go to work using a bike in just 47-50 minutes. If I commute using the jeepney, bus, and service bus, it takes me one hour and 30 minutes collectively to reach the office. By a taxi, it would take an hour,” Fortuno, who works for the Government Service Insurance System in Pasay City, said. "Hindi ka naman pagpapawisan kung mga two kilometers ka magbibisikleta. Kung malayo, mag-shower ka na lang pagdating sa office kagaya ng ginagawa ko," Fortuno related.

He vowed that they would do their part in encouraging the public to use bicycles by conducting more critical mass bicycle rides.

“Use secondary roads. Do not use the EDSA (Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue ),” Fortuno advised those who would want to use bicycles noting the danger posed by the busy thoroughfare as well as the harmful smoke emission of the public utility buses.

A folding bicycle incorporates special design features enabling the bike to fold into a compact form, thereby facilitating transport or storage according to Wikipedia. A pre-owned unit can be bought at P1,900 while a high-end one costs up to $1,200, Fortuno said.