EDITORIAL - The Cebu South Coastal Road …er playground, etc.

While Cebu City is taking pains at protecting its side of the Cebu South Coastal Road by allowing only those with security passes to use it, it is high time that neighboring Talisay City should do its share of protecting its side of the P7 billion road from illegal use.

We are not saying that Talisay is not doing something to make sure that the road is put to good use. In fact, the city's cops and barangay tanods are very visible during the daytime to apprehend trisikads, bicycles and tricycles that use the road.

Talisay officials should, however, also consider patrolling the area at night, especially when the Cebu City side is already closed to motorists because there are parts of the coastal road, especially the ones where the sodium lights have been activated, that are used for other things.

For one, it becomes a playground for children who live nearby. They can be seen playing on the road, on the island and in the sidewalks. It has also become an extended living room for some residents who bring out chairs and tables and stay by the roadside. Barbecue stalls are also starting to sprout in different areas along the road and stores and eateries have extended their dining areas to the sidewalk. A vulcanizing shop is using the sidewalk to display tires and there is even a makeshift furniture showroom in one area! Aside from all these, the road has also become one of the biggest parking areas for private vehicles, PUJs, tricycles and trisikads!

We are bringing these things up because even if the Cebu South Coastal Road is not yet fully operational, there are motorists who use the road even at night. Being a highway, motorists are expected to travel at high speed, which endangers the lives of those who play there, stay there and have put up small businesses there. Take note that there have been a number of accidents involving speeding vehicles and pedestrians or trisikads that have been reported in different areas along the stretch of the coastal road.

Talisay officials should also nip in the bud the use of the coastal road's sidewalks for businesses and as parking area because these practices might just encourage more residents to follow suit in the future, especially when the road becomes fully operational. And besides, the coastal road was not built to be a playground, an extended living room, a parking area or a karenderia. Precisely why it is called a road.