The work to be done

May 19, 2019 Opinion Sideglance

With a new Baguio City Mayor in the person of former Police General Benjamin Magalong, we are hopeful of a fresh perspective and initiative that will be brought to bear on longstanding concerns that have plagued the locality.

We take note that one of the campaign agendas of the new mayor during the election was ‘effective traffic management’. In this matter there are some suggestions that are worth looking into that might just provide long lasting relief to the almost constant traffic congestion occurring daily particularly at the Central Business District (CBD) area.

One of these suggestions is the possibility of finally de-clogging the CBD of trucks and buses, as well as other public utility vehicles by directing them to have their loading and staging areas along strategic areas at the outskirts of the city through so called ‘centralized transport terminal hubs’.

For those plying the northern route going out of the city perhaps the new city administration can take a look at the possibility of converting a portion of the slaughterhouse compound along Magsaysay Avenue as the ‘North Transportation Terminal Hub’.

For those trucks and buses, and other PUVs, with a southern route perhaps a portion of the 8 hectare land given by the Department of Agriculture (DA) to the city can be utilized as the South Transportation Terminal Hub’.

The same centralized hub at the outskirts of the city can be done with those PUVs plying the eastern and western route.

Once all of these four centralized transportation terminal hubs are established and operational we might yet see a marked reduction in the traffic congestion at the CBD area.

Another possible traffic measure worth looking into is the permanent prohibition for parking of vehicles along the sidewalks at the CBD area for all hours of the day.

Instead and as an alternative those motorists intending to enter the CBD area will be provided with legitimate parking areas which can be either horizontal, vertical or even underground parking areas and spaces.

These strategic parking spaces should be contained in an overall traffic management plan for the city and should include, in concept at least, multi-storey parking garage, underground parking
garage or even automated parking garages.

This early the barangays should already scout within their respective jurisdictions areas where multi-storey parking garages can be put up or erected considering that the traffic problem is actually citywide in scope.

Finally, as a permanent and final solution to the traffic problem, perhaps the new administration led by the new father of the city can look into the possibility of establishing vehicular routes beneath the ground.

It is already admitted that there can no longer be any practical and reasonable expansion for the limited and narrow streets of the city above ground. But what if a new road system is established
underground?

Some might consider this impossible to accomplish but what if former general Magalong as the new mayor will be a bit more open-minded to such an idea or concept of utilizing subterranean tunnels through which PUVs can travel?

The magnitude of such a concept to solve the traffic woes of the city might seem overwhelming at first glance, but then again have a new mayor who promises a ‘breath of fresh air’, and so we have to remain hopeful.