QUEZON CITY, Sept. 28 (PIA) – Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said the Aquino administration is taking the “whole of government approach” in solving traffic problems along the 23.8-kilometer stretch of EDSA.
Speaking before a crowd of hundreds during a multi-stakeholder consultation forum held Thursday at the GT Toyota Auditorium, University of the Philippines-Diliman, PNoy’s recently labeled traffic czar said that various government agencies are now one, and are cooperating fully to achieve a shared goal of decongesting traffic, not only along EDSA, but nearby thoroughfares as well.
Almendras said government’s current objective has been trimmed down to “maximizing people throughput” which can be achieved via sound traffic management, bus reform, and road engineering solutions.
"Government currently prioritizes the use of high occupancy vehicles such as buses and trains which carry more passengers per square meter," the official said.
“Part of our traffic management and enforcement proposal will be to introduce yellow lanes as exclusive for public vehicles and high occupancy vehicles, create MMDA Task Force C5, prohibit cars from using bus lanes on non-transition sections, start operations of Terminal Appointment-Based System for the International Container Ports, and study one-way traffic scheme for Makati-Mandaluyong and Estrella-Pantaleon bridges,” he said.
“We will also introduce new bus routes, lift the number coding for public buses, launch regular, limited-stop, and premium express buses, require bus operators to install GPS tracking, and establish a bus monitoring and dispatch appointment system,” he added.
Almendras said already in the pipeline are the rail extensions for LRT-1 and LRT2, acquisition of new trains for MRT-3, and construction of additional new lines (LRT-4, LRT-6, and MRT-7) in order to move more people.
“In addition, we are set to build the North-South Railway (Malolos-Manila-Los Banos) and construct the Sta. Monica-Lawton Bridge (connect Bonifacio Global City in the Taguig-Makati area and Ortigas Center in Pasig),” he added.
The P171 billion North-South Railway project, once operational, will make 10 daily trips with seven train sets passing through 66 stations, connecting Tutuban to the southern peripheries of Metro Manila and Luzon. (RJB/JCP/PIA-NCR)
See more at: http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/261443158016/-whole-gov-t-approach-used-to-manage-edsa-traffic#sthash.tcNAL0O2.dpuf
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