MMDA wants two-deck buses on EDSA

MANILA, Philippines - If the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has its way, the double-decker buses first used in Metro Manila in the 1980s will again be seen plying EDSA.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino believes that this type of public vehicle could help solve EDSA’s nagging traffic problems.

“Of the 4,936 franchised buses in Metro Manila, 3,421 are currently plying EDSA. If double-deck buses are used, we not only lessen pollution but also provide more road space without lessening the seating space capacity,” he said in a statement.

The use of two-deck buses was first suggested by Bataan Rep. Enrique Garcia Jr. to ease the “horrendous traffic congestion” in the metropolis. 

Tolentino said the police Highway Patrol Group (HPG), which had been tasked by President Aquino to solve the traffic congestion, is open to the proposal. 

He quoted HPG Director Arnold Gunnacao as saying “it is high time to use two-level buses that could accommodate and ferry more passengers to their destinations compared with regular buses.” 

In the 1980s, the Metro Manila Transit Corp. introduced the double-deck buses on EDSA. The model most used then was the Leyland Atlantean, a double-decker bus chassis manufactured by Leyland between 1958 and 1986. Leyland pioneered the design of front entrance, rear engine double-deck buses in the United Kingdom and introduced the one-man operation buses.