Baguio Mayor: Traffic cannot be totally solved

BAGUIO CITY -- Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong said the local government is gaining ground to address traffic problems in the city through the assistance of the technical experts from the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) but the same cannot be totally solved.

The local chief executive claimed that based on the data obtained from the Land Transportation Office 9LTO) in Baguio, there are already over 64,000 private and public motor vehicles plying the city’s roads while the local road system could only accommodate at least 15,000 vehicles that is why there is a lot to be done to address the city’s prevailing traffic problem.

He added that the MMDA study being conducted by the MMDA will be given for free by the administration of retired Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim who heads the said  Manila-based authority.

According to him, the overall project cost of the study is around P1.5 million which will be given for free to the local government aside from the fact that it is only Baguio City that directly benefited from the conduct of such traffic study by the traffic experts.

The city mayor said that the MMDA traffic experts who conducted the earlier data gathering in the city will again come back to finalize the data that they were able to get before proceeding with the much acted traffic study.
One of the present administration’s 15-point agenda is aggressive traffic management through the implementation and utilization of appropriate engineering interventions that will ease the burden of the people on the occurrence of daily traffic congestions in the city’s central business district area.

MMDA traffic experts brought with them their traffic simulation software where the gathered data on the city’s prevailing traffic problem was inputted for the same to be processed and awaiting the suggestions and recommendations that will be made available to the local government within a period of 4 months.

Aside from strict law enforcement, the local government embarked in the implementation of the aggressive anti-road obstruction campaign to help recover portions of the public roads were taken by private individuals for their use so that the same will be used by the public.

The local government also intensified the towing of illegal parked motor vehicles to instill discipline among motorists for them to observe the proper parking of their vehicles so as not to obstruct the smooth flow of traffic in the different parts of the city.

He stated that there are already quick wins in the efforts of the local government to improve the prevailing traffic situation that is why the motorists should be patient in awaiting for the future gains of the city in improving the daily traffic in the different parts of the city so as not to burden the motoring and commuting public.

He underscored that it is really the huge volume of motor vehicles plying the city’s streets daily that cause the monstrous traffic jams which is to the detriment of the local economy. -- Dexter A.  See