Category Archives: Government

By Ellson A. Quismorio, http://www.mb.com.ph

It’s safe to say that the bicycles hanging on the walls along Epifanio de los Santos Ave. (EDSA) in the areas of Ayala and Magallanes have attracted much attention from pedestrians and thieves alike.

While the thieves were not readily available for comment (they were all probably huddling in one of the side streets, scheming), pedestrians and commuters usually give that bewildered, head-scratching expression when seeing the mounted bikes for the first time.

These bikes, in fact, are part of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority’s (MMDA) Share-a-Bike project, to be used on the one-kilometer bike lane that the agency opened along the sidewalk between Magallanes and Ayala last Jan. 17.

The rationale for this project was to provide the people with a “greener” alternative to public transport, like the buses that dominate the EDSA, at least for that part of the highway.

That idea has yet to catch on with the general public.

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— ELR, GMA News

A P3.7-billion plan to rehabilitate Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA) for the next two years got the nod of Metro Manila mayors, but not without concerns on its effects on traffic along the 23-km road.

The Metro Manila Council approved Friday the plan to improve EDSA from Roxas Boulevard to Monumento, radio dzBB reported early Saturday.

Several temporary traffic solutions during the rehabilitation were mapped out as mayors voiced concern about the effect of the rehabilitation on traffic.

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By Kristine Felisse Mangunay, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Fed up with drivers who won’t stop to let you pass on the so-called “zebra crossings” on the street?

A proposed measure that penalizes such motorists and has the potential to start a much-needed “change of culture” on Metro Manila roads is gaining ground in San Juan City.

The city council last week passed on second reading a draft ordinance that requires all drivers to step on the brakes even when only one person is crossing the street using the zebra lane.

Authored by Councilor Angelo Agcaoili, Ordinance No. 1-2013 is up for third and final reading tomorrow.

According to Agcaoili, it is mainly aimed at drivers who apparently regard pedestrian lanes as mere “decorations” on the road. The worst of these drivers, he said, would even “blow their horns” at people trying to cross the streets at these designated lanes.

“This culture has to change,” said Agcaoili, a lawyer. “Our pedestrians must be encouraged to use our pedestrian lanes, knowing that vehicles will stop.”

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by thirdfactor.com

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) in the Philippines has started a pilot of the Bus Management and Dispatch System (BMDS) that will regulate the number of public utility buses (PUBs) in Edsa and monitor the bus drivers using biometric fingerprint scans.

The program will be implemented at the MMDA bus terminal at Fairview, Quezon City. Over this year, the MMDA plans to set up twelve more satellite stations throughout the metro area.

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By Jodee A. Agoncillo, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Road improvements on Edsa are expected to make driving on the major thoroughfare literally a bad trip for motorists in the next two years.

The possibility loomed after the Metro Manila Council approved unanimously on Friday a plan of the Department of Public Works and Highways to rehabilitate the 23-km avenue starting May.

Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson said the repair work on Edsa will be done in three phases for 23 months under the DPWH’s Urgent Infrastructure Development Project, in time for the World Economic Forum in 2014 and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in 2015.

The P3.7-billion project is part of the agency’s commitment to improve all auxiliary roads by 2014 and all secondary roads in 2016, with a 5-year maintenance fee.

The DPWH said it aims to replace all damaged concrete pavements to ensure road stability and the carrying capacity of the road by using high-grade asphalt, as well as address the flooding problem on Edsa by declogging the existing drainage line.

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