The Kilometer Marker, What It Is

Things that we think are commonplace may after all sound arcane to others. Let's take the kilometer marker (also called kilometer post) as an example. I have encountered, and I still am encountering too many people who don't know what these are for, and what the codes try to tell us travelers.

The ugly thing is some of these folks are even close to me, like I see or talk to them almost on a daily basis (good that none are from my immediate family) hehehe.

I discovered, that some of them have read my stories referring to these kilometer markers that they did not understand, but just did not ask me. Others have come forward by asking me what I meant with those or what are those.

That is how I realized that something I have known as early as when I was just 7 years old, is all along “uh–huh” to many. So "OMG this cannot be"!

Someone I practically grew up together with even pulled my ears a few weeks ago over bottles of beer, asking why he did not know about this kilometer marker thing. All I could say was, I thought we (we as in all Filipinos who at least went to elementary school) all know about those damn posts hehe! Then again, we were/are not sure if these posts are even part of any elementary school lesson, di ba?!

Anyway, since some of you may also be wondering what those are that I sometimes refer to in my travel stories, and like others, that you might also not be brave enough to ask me what those are… here I go and as far as my lowly memory from when I was 7 years old can tell me.

Oh, for those who know better, correct me if I’m ever wrong about anything on this thing okay? This is not as if I have just read a book about them. All my knowledge that I'll be telling, is based on my travel experiences.


The kilometer marker… bow!

What is it? It’s that yellow post about 3 or 4 feet high, standing by the roadside that you cannot miss while on your way to just about anywhere as there are many of them in our road networks.

What are they for? They serve various purposes, depending on who wants to use them. Generally, they guide motorists or travelers like us, about where we are, where we are headed to and/or how far have we already been traveling.

Engineers and/or highway construction workers use them as reference when doing their jobs. Drivers and conductors use them too, to compute fares. Local government officials use them to identify or mark boundaries between barrios, towns and cities.

Police and traffic officers use them to easily point places during emergencies. Plus many other such uses. Most importantly, our parents use them to answer naggers who keep asking “are we there yet"?

“Are we there yet? “, I recall, that is how I learned about these things! When I was still a little kulit of a brat, who kept asking if we were there yet, my parents would tell me to watch the road signs so I would know. And I did! That knowledge naturally progressed into my trying to know what was the next town, and next, and the next. Ah, when I started asking them about 'next', they gave me a road map!

I now reckon, that must have been a "big achievement" for them, to have successfully kept me from bothering everyone with my “are we there yet“ kakulitan! Hmm, mga wa-is! Mauutak! But I only have them to thank for this. And, come to think of it, that might have started what later came out as an insatiable desire to roam this country. Or maybe I was just really road-bound even that early. Wha'ever!

Are they all yellow?

Well, in the Philippines, all those markers are supposed to be yellow with black letters and numbers (as per the DPWH). But in some towns and cities, whose officials are ignorant about the use of kilometer markers or the meaning of colors in road safety, ah these innocent posts could come in various colors!

White (like that one in the picture) is sort of, still acceptable to me. Sa akin lang naman! But to paint them red or any other color, ala eh, my lips are pursed and sealed na! They'll be hard to see!

Those are supposed to be easily visible even at a distance, and the use of yellow is not because the authorities love Cory. That color has been in use all over the world even before she was born!

Well, at least I have not yet seen kilometer markers that are colored green, blue, orange, purple or pink hehe! Malay nyo, ignorance among public officials can be the start of something gayly colorful, you know!

How do we read the letters and numbers?

Ahm, I thought you wouldn’t ask, because I was not about to tell you hehe!

To answer that, you first need to remember Pareng Pepe aka Papa Joe! Papa who? Uh, that handsome guy whose been standing over at Luneta for a time now, and always guarded by 2 military officers?

You know him, right? Ang pambansang bayani! Oo yes, Jose Paciano Rizal, if you are that slow haha!Where he stands is considered as “kilometer zero“ or “km 0“. Folks usually pronounce that as “kay-em-zero“.

Go there and you'll see the mother of all kilometer markers in this country. It’s the biggest of them all, though its not yellow as you can see in the picture at left!

Well, ahhh, actually, the “km 0” marker stands a few hundred feet from his statue. I think its more for the aesthetics than anything else, cuz that would have looked ugly if you put the marker right by his statue, right? Baka gawin pang sandalan nung mga marines na nakabantay!

Eh paano nga basahin ang mga numero at letra? Teka, chill lang, wag init ulo!

Now that you know where and what is “km 0”…The "upper" figures on kilometer markers are supposed to refer to "kilometer zero" or “km 0”. That is how we read the letters and numbers.

Take the picture at right as an example. I was in Naga City, by the highway, waiting for a ride to CamSur Watersports Complex. It tells you that, where I stood, by those red flowers, I was 446 kilometers away from Manila - yes, from Luneta!

446 kilometers to/from Jose Rizal’s monument in Luneta to be exact! If you want to measure that for yourself, go ahead and try. No one will stop you!

But what about the letter “P” and the number “4”? No its not pier four nor is it page four! It means the next town (whose name starts with the letter “P”) that is Pili, Camarines Sur, is still four kilometers away from that post or marker. Yep, dito sa kanan, papuntang Pili, mula sa tabi nung pulang bulakak!

But where in Pili? It’s a big town you know? Umm, there are localized kilometer zeros in each town, city or province that are usually located at the government center of the mentioned locality.

But let’s go to that topic later, okay? Too much information might overload your pea of a brain!

As for now, if you were standing beside that kilometer marker, you can call home and tell them “hey, I'm exactly 446 kilometers away from Manila and will be in Pili, CamSur after another 4 kilometers”! Then expect your relatives to answer with “Huwaaaaw, really? talaga? as in? so ano ngayon?”. Ganun!

Yes, like that. Yun lang. Bow!

Lets cut this “lesson“ and learn about complexities in my next blog entry. Its not that simple after all!

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