Wanted: Better traffic management
I wrote yesterday about Cebuano drivers I encountered at the South Road Properties (SRP) who ought to be taught driving lessons or the laws and rules on traffic. Many drivers of multicabs, trucks, and small cars drive on the left hand side of the road when they are so slow-moving. That is the side for fast-moving vehicles, which is why foreign drivers and those from Manila are just amazed that Cebuano drivers really don’t know the rules of driving. I went to Mactan yesterday, and there were four cars and multi-cabs hugging the leftmost lane, driving so slow they have become irritants.
Since we are now starting a new year, I dare urge traffic managers of Mandaue City and Lapu-Lapu City to first install a huge sign that declares: “Leftmost lane for fast-moving vehicles only!” In fact, there should be a motorcycle police to patrol the road, including the Fernan bridge and the SRP.
What are our traffic police doing? Many people are saying that the worsening traffic situation of Cebu City is blamed on the increasing volume of private cars and the inadequate road infrastructures to compensate it. While this is true, it is the lack of driver education that makes things worse.
Land Transportation Office-7 Director Victor Caindec said he has yet to collate 2018 data. But in 2017, there were 574,819 motor vehicles and motorcycles registered in Cebu. For Cebu City, over 110,000 vehicles and motorcycles were up for renewal in 2018. There’s a possibility that the number would still increase. I know that the solution to our traffic woes is a mass transit system. Not even the BRT can help. A subway or an LRT can.
At least, I learned that we know have some 40 units of modern public utility vehicles that are already servicing the city starting the end of last year. The modern PUVs operated by Persano Corp. ply two missionary routes. The first route traverses from Cebu City Hall to Asia Town I.T. Park passing through Robinsons Galleria Cebu, Cebu Business Park and vice versa, while the second one traverses from R. Duterte Street to Sykes, via Happy Valley, Fuente Osmeña, Ramos Street, D. Jakosalem Street, Cebu Business Park and vice versa.
But then again, before we even start with a mass transit system, we must focus on educating our drivers. What most of these drivers learn when they go to driving school is they learn to manipulate a vehicle, but driving a car is only half the solution to our problems. Most drivers do not even read traffic signs. Many taxi drivers make U-turns on double-yellow lines.
I passed by Minglanilla the other day and their biggest problem is they allow vehicles to make U-turns and left turns at the center of the city. If they only stop allowing vehicles from making these, they would instantly solve their traffic problems. Let them have two U-turns a kilometer from the center of the town and believe me, traffic would begin to ease in Minglanilla. But the key is for traffic management to start apprehending slow vehicles that occupy the leftmost lane and traffic would at least start to move smoothly.
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Since this is our first column for 2019, let me say that our New Year’s Eve celebration was the shortest I have ever heard in the years we have been living in Capitol Hills. The fireworks began three minutes before the clock struck at 12 a.m. and stopped 10 minutes later. Thirty years ago, the fireworks would start an hour before 12 a.m. and stop 30 minutes later. Since then, it has been shorter. It was also my first time to fly my drone at night and during the New Year’s Eve celebration.
Meanwhile, we learned from the news that the Department of Health (DOH) yesterday declared a “historic” reduction in the number of fireworks-related injuries during the New Year revelry.
As of 6 a.m. yesterday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said a total of 139 injuries were recorded from 60 sentinel hospitals nationwide since Dec. 21, or 68 percent lower than the 428 cases documented a year ago. Best of all, there were no stray bullet victims or fatalities. This means good news for 2019!
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