During my weekly program,
“Usapang Kalye” with Ms. Tina Marasigan on DZMM, there were several items that
were brought out by our studio guests, Mike Salalima and
Neomie Recio of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority
(MMDA), which will surely affect traffic in Metro Manila in the coming weeks,
if not months.
Metro Manila Buildx3. An update of the “Build, Build, Build” program in Metro Manila indicates several projects with completion going beyond 2020 while new ones will break ground. Construction of the Skyway connector, Harbor link, Metro Rail Transit 7 and the Subway will be a bit delayed while the Common Station column construction will commence within the next coming weeks. Traffic in those areas will surely be affected. However, the government is ready with a traffic management and rerouting plan to be implemented soon.
Guadalupe Bridge. A more
worrisome scenario would be the partial closure of the Guadalupe Bridge, which
we were told would happen within the year. As mentioned by
Recio, the long overdue rehabilitation of the bridge cannot be postponed any
longer given its age and the tremendous daily load of vehicles it carries
almost 24/7. The plan would be to close two lanes on each side, leaving three
lanes northbound and three lanes southbound. Hopefully one of the two bridges
being built—Rockwell and Santa Monica, will be completed by then.
Pasig River Ferry. Fortunately, the Pasig River Ferry is being expanded to include more boats with bigger capacity, more frequencies, newer stations and newer routes, according to Salalima, the new routes will bring the ferry system all the way to Marikina. And this will happen in 2020. There are also plans to bring it to Rizal and Laguna de Bay in coordination with the LLDA. This should help decongest land travel substantially. And, ferry fares remain to be free for now!
Motorcycles on national roads.
It also looks like that the MMDA will be enforcing the age-old regulation of
prohibiting motorcycles with less than 400-CC engine displacement on national
roads, to include probably Edsa. This will definitely earn protests from our
motorcycle riders but MMDA cites two major reasons: One, definitely for safety
reason as accidents involving motorcycles remain to be the main cause of deaths
and serious injuries. Second, according to the MMDA, this is embodied in an
age-old law that has been ignored in the past for
political reasons.
Land Transportation Office. In a phone interview with Assistant Secretary Edgar Galvante of the LTO, two significant items were discussed—both good news. One is the requirement to go through 15 hours of lecture before being granted a student license. Second is the translation of the LTO exams and signage into major local languages, like Bisaya and Ilocano. Both are welcome developments given that most drivers nowadays do not even know basic road courtesy, not to mention cognizant of basic road and traffic signs. And translating into local languages would definitely further enhance this.
Baguio City. In another phone interview, this time with Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong, the good mayor is definitely preoccupied to find ways and means to resolve the worsening traffic situation in his city. From his original plan of putting up three major transport terminal and parking buildings, several more are now being added to properly address the overflowing number of vehicles, which currently stands at double the capacity just for the local population. Also, the resumption of commercial flights at the Loakan Airport will happen anytime soon, hopefully within the next few months.
Tricycles. Finally, last week’s column on tricycles drew several comments from friends and readers. Definitely it struck a nerve in most of us. We see trikes everyday yet ignore them; get mad at them yet use them extensively. The problem surrounding tricycles need to be confronted and resolved. And given that the trikes are our basic motorized beasts of burden; then all the more the need to modernize them. And yes, the local government units can’t do it alone for both lack of capacity, as well as the political implications that go along with its regulation. Once and for all, a national-local cooperation needs to happen to ensure a more convenient, more efficient and safer tricycle riding experience for Filipino commuters.
Thomas Tim Orbos was former DOTr undersecretary for roads and general manager of the MMDA. He is currently undertaking further studies at the McCourt School of Public Policy of Georgetown University. He can be reached via e-mail at thomas_orbos@sloan.mit.edu