Cebuano motorists can't drive fast enough
Yesterday a major accident, an eleven-car pileup literally shut down the Marcelo Fernan Bridge that became viral in many social media networks. Multi-car pileups are common in the US or Canada but with a startling difference --it happens during a heavy snowstorm or rain. This also happens in many places in Europe where their freeways do not have any speed limits. So the problem here is truly due to the ignorance of our drivers, because there was no rain that day and the weather was just too perfect for a pileup to occur.
Indeed, the pileup that happened the other day was an accident that should never have happened at all. If a truck lost its brakes, it is not the fault of the truck, but the fault of the driver for not maintaining his vehicle to maximum shape. A simple check on this incident shows that it happened towards the end of the bridge, which is at its steepest point. This is why when the truck lost its brakes, the other vehicles behind the truck merely slammed into the vehicle in front. Can you imagine that this happened when there was no congestion on the bridge that day?
This gives us an idea that many drivers do not know how to brake quickly and suddenly; they end up losing control of their vehicles. When I taught my son how to drive, I taught him to drive as fast as he could then go to a full brake, so that he will know how to encounter a fast-moving car that is all so suddenly braking as hard as it could.
That case last Monday is proof that our drivers just cannot handle high-speed driving, more so that this happened on the side of the bridge that was sloping down at a steep angle. Yet the weather was so fine! This accident should never have happened! So the question is who should we blame for this accident? Of course the first vehicle that started it all. But it doesn't mean that the other drivers are exonerated for being part of the pileup. They are equally as guilty for not being able to control their cars.
For those reading this piece, it is high time to ask yourselves if you are able to control your vehicle when you are driving at 80kph. Mind you, 80kph is not that fast, but when you are at 80kph and driving at that part of the Marcelo Fernan Bridge, chances are, you might have control problems. Perhaps many driving schools in our city should teach their student drivers how to drive fast and stop quickly.
Mind you, when I see a new car with a huge sign at the back that says "Brand New Driver. Please understand". Honestly I would like to believe that the Land Transportation Office should put penalties on drivers putting such a sign because it proves that the driver is not yet too confident in his or her capability to drive a car on our roads.
At this point, I don't know what are the plans of the Bridge Management Board on how to handle such difficult issues. The BMB is currently headed by Cebu Governor Hilario "Jun Jun" Davide Jr. I should know, during my time as Chairman of the infrastructure Committee in the Regional Development Council I created the BMB whose purpose is to check out the bridge. At that time, I envisioned for the second bridge to have a tow truck so that whenever vehicles get stuck, it can be towed immediately and those that get towed have to pay a stiff fine.
Perhaps a huge fine should be imposed on trucks whose brake systems fail within the road link on the bridge. Better still, the Cebu Truckers Association should inform its members that each truck in their respective fleets should have a weekly thorough check to prevent future accidents from happening.
At this point, I exhort the BMB to hold an immediate meeting with groups like the truckers association in order to prevent future incidents from happening. Again, road pileups are commonplace in European, American, or Canadian cities but they happen due to a bad snowstorm. We didn't have a snowstorm last Monday!
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