What if the EDSA busway ran counterflow to traffic, suggests former senator
MANILA, Philippines — Reelectionist former senator Ping Lacson proposed that to address traffic violations on the EDSA busway, buses could run counterflow to the rest of the traffic.
The EDSA busway has sparked heated discussions over the past month, from proposals for its removal that earned the ire of commuters to instances of government vehicles violating its traffic rules.
More recently, a convoy of Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Rommel Marbil was caught illegally using the bus lane for a supposed emergency meeting.
“To prevent unauthorized vehicles from using the bus way, MMDA (Metro Manila Development Authority) may consider studying the infrastructure reconfiguration to reverse the direction of buses passing through the bus lanes and make the problem solve itself. Nobody wants a head-on collision,” Lacson said in a statement on Friday, February 28.
Lacson said that motorists should exempt themselves at their own risk.
A similar proposal has been discussed by the Department of Transportation (DOTr) in 2024.
“We asked the opinion of the bus operators, and their initial reaction is that it is a good idea. We want to make the busway really exclusive for buses. And we also want the doors of the buses on the right side for safety considerations,” then-DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista said in November 2024.
The PNP faced heavy criticism for using the EDSA busway, with both the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and Malacañang expressing disapproval of the use of an "emergency meeting" as a reason for violating the busway rules.
DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla said that he would ask Marbil to explain the incident.
Meanwhile, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said that emergency meetings are not an excuse for government vehicles to use the EDSA busway.
“Kapag po kasi sinabi natin na miyembro ng PNP, ambulansya, fire truck – hindi po kasama doon iyong emergency meeting. Kung may emergency meeting, mas maganda po umalis sila nang maaga sa kanilang bahay,” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing.
(If we say that it’s a member of the PNP, ambulances, fire trucks — emergency meetings are not included there. If there is an emergency meeting, it is better to leave their houses earlier.)
The emergency meeting the PNP convoy was headed to is suspected to be related to the case of a 14-year-old Chinese student who was kidnapped.
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