rant: EDSA-SLEX / EDSA-ROXAS on-ramps

[michael677]

who would happen to know who is responsible for managing this vital EDSA fly-over??? is it the mmda, makati gov, or the SLEX mgmt? because they are a bunch of stupidos!!!!

the on-ramps im referring to is the one approaching pasong tamo when you come from ayala/cubao that suddenly splits into two without adequate directional signs.

first time motorists would certainly get lost choosing the right fly-over because of the absence of freakin' signs! i know there are huge signboards that informs ROXAS/BACLARAN (this lane), ALBANG/MANIlA (this lane) but they are situated 1 km away!!!... near the elevated Ayala MRT Station!!!! and add to that, you couldn't see very well the center island because there are no reflectorized V-shaped markers that signifies that the road will split into two and the island itself is only 1 to 2ft high. just imagine if a bus or a truck suddenly gets stucked on that island!

if i remember, this was the case even 10 years back!! it was still better then because there were functioning street lights on those fly-overs

[istan]

Nahuli ka ser, swerving noh?
Hula ko lng ha...

Pero yeah, pass there everyday. Daming nahuhuling swerving jan. Pagbus, padadaanin pag swerving...pero paggayahin mo ang bus...ikaw ang huhulihin.

[non-vtec]

muntik ko na rin matamaan yung center island na yan. buti mabagal lang ang takbo ko.

ang labo din nung signs. nakaka-confuse pag di mo kabisado yung lugar.

[mazdamazda]

first time motorists would certainly get lost choosing the right fly-over because of the absence of freakin' signs! i know there are huge signboards that informs ROXAS/BACLARAN (this lane), ALBANG/MANIlA (this lane) but they are situated 1 km away!!!... near the elevated Ayala MRT Station!!!!(

Errr...

You said there was an absence of signs but you also said that there were signs 1km away.

Which is which?

Those signs coming off the Ayala underpass already already enough to guide you to which lane you should be in. During the first time that I passed through that area while drivng (which was YEARS ago) I wasn't really confused with the signs.

[bender]

I had the same problem the first time i used the same flyovers near pasong tamo. The problem is that there are no signs on the entry ramp of both flyovers which makes choosing the right flyover confusing. I had to do it through trial and error.

[chris_d]

I've seen quite a few vehicles get stuck on the center island that divides the lanes going to SLEX and Baclaran. Madilim dyan pag gabi, walang mga ilaw.

[e2fee]

You said there was an absence of signs but you also said that there were signs 1km away.

Which is which?

Those signs coming off the Ayala underpass already already enough to guide you to which lane you should be in. During the first time that I passed through that area while drivng (which was YEARS ago) I wasn't really confused with the signs.

Obviously, the original poster meant that there is an absence of signs close to the fork, as opposed to far away. One sign far away may be enough for the x percent of the population, which you apparently belong to, who have relatively longer memories or are more tolerant/forgiving of the inadequacies of Philippine signage or are already familiar with that fork. But I don't think x is satisfactory (high enough), otherwise we wouldn't be hearing so many 'swerving' cases.

Is the money earned from the 'swerving' fines going to putting up a sign? Or will they keep that fork sign-free so that they can continue earning 'swerving' fines?

The lack of sign at the fork (that one, and in general) is quite glaring/disconcerting to those used to driving in other countries where there are usually at least two and often three signs, from far away to just right before.

I have not been caught 'swerving' at that fork, although I know others who have. I also do not recall the far away sign. If it is there, clearly it is too far away for me. The way I have gotten through that fork without 'swerving' is to go very, very slowly. How could you be accused of 'swerving' when you are going at say 5 kph and maybe occupying two lanes, undecided. (Assuming there are lane markers.) Another small example of how a systemic failure causes individual behavior that contributes to systemic inefficiency.

[Automahn]

Sadya atang walang sign para malito at magswerving ang mga motorista at may makotongan sila. Muntik na rin akong mahuli diyan. Papunta akong Alabang, may nauuna sa kin na Cefiro, pareho kaming nasa lane na paakyat ng flyover patungong Pasay. Lumipat yung Cefiro dun sa lane na paakyat naman sa flyover going to the SLEX, ayun 4 na MMDA kagad ang humarang sa kanya. Nung nakita kong ganun, dinerecho ko na lang yung EDSA sabay kanan sa Evangelista tapos lusot na lang sa sidestreet tapos SLEX na.

[mazdamazda]

Obviously, the original poster meant that there is an absence of signs close to the fork, as opposed to far away. One sign far away may be enough for the x percent of the population, which you apparently belong to, who have relatively longer memories or are more tolerant/forgiving of the inadequacies of Philippine signage or are already familiar with that fork. But x is not high enough for comfort, otherwise there wouldn't be so many 'swerving' cases.

Err...

As I recall... there is another sign near the bus stops and another sign in the flyovers themselves.

I'll take some picture of those signs.

[rsnald]

whether there are signs 1 km away or signs on the flyovers or bus stops themselves... the fact is...maraming nagkakamali dyan sa lugar na yan. I'd admit ako nahuli na din ako dyan when I had to fetch someone from NAIA and forgot which lane was going to Tramo etc. nakakalito talga if you don't pass that lane often. and the fact na ginagawang cottage industry ng mga hinayupak ng MMDA yan... eh there must be something wrong with the positioning of the signages. I remember reading somewhere that improperly placed traffic signages should not be a cause for a traffic violation apprehension if the signage themselves do not encourage proper traffic flow, one classic example are no left turn signs that are hidden from view of the oncoming traffic. karamihan ng nahuhuli dyan..nagswe-swerve because they're forced to since they realize at a relatively late stage of their approach to the flyover that they're on the wrong lane. iba naman yung nagswe-swerve ka dahil sa trip mo lang or gusto mo lang mang cut.

simple engineering sense lang yan. put the signs where it matters. hindi yung gagawin mong trap yung paglalagay ng traffic signs.

[Bravoexo]

I don't know... the signs there seems pretty straight forward to me. Bihira din akong dumaan dyan (on lately dahil sa Mall of Asia and airport duties lang).

[astinagt]

nagkamali na rin ako ng pasok dito...mali talaga yung position ng sign nila.. and many motorist think that the leftmost ramp and papuntang SLEX ....napunta ko ng pasay.. anyway theres always a first time....

[makoantz]

yup, agree 100%, that ramp is really confusing.

If you’re plying this route a couple times a week, it would be automatic. But for those who pass by here occasionally (a few times a year), it is really confusing. One, the ramp is not intuitive. First timers would easily select the inner most lane to be the lane going to Alabang/SLEX. Two, because of the bus lanes, even if you know that the Alabang/SLEX ramp is on the middle lane, even if you stay in the middle lane some 500m back, you still need to veer to your right at the approach if you want to go to Alabang/SLEX. I don’t know about the rest but I believe that something is not right here and needs to be fixed.

[landlord]

I had the same confusing experience. After pasay road, i followed /stayed on the lane with the sign that says "to Alabang". Upon nearing mantrade and still on the same lane, I noticed that the lane was towards the "to Baclaran" ramp so i had to swerve right. The traffic enforcer was quick to flag me down but I swerved fast , didn't stop and went straight ahead towards magallanes.

[theveed]

Rant ako sa rerouting ng Pioneer Tunnel to EDSA kanina, pucha kung san-san ako umabot...

[seonadancing]

nagkamali na din ako dito, i was supposed to go to Alabang but ended up on the flyover going to Pasay, napa WTF na lang ako, wala pang sign nun. The fact that there are crocodiles waiting there means that place is high alert for kotong. Ang rant ko is yun Edsa flyover sa ortigas from cubao to makati. Parang may humps yun flyover because of the asphalt. They should fix that hump!!!

[gearspeed]

Nagpost na ako dati ng ganito.Madilim pa nga dito sa daan na ito.
Technic ko dyan pagdadaan ako papuntang SLEX 2nd lane ako kung hindi pa sobrang traffic then 3rd lane.Mas maganda pa ata kapag galing ka sa itaas kaysa sa nasa ilalim ka.
Dito ko din nakita nung sunday ang isang astigin na honda city na kulay silver nagdive siya sa isang bus para lang makapasok papuntang SLEX talagang kitang kita ko ang lapit na nung city sa island dun na nagdidive papuntang Pasay at papuntang SLEX/Manila.
Madalas meron nahuhuli dito na swerving biktima din dad ko dyan dati..

[Driv3er]

actualyl sirs, if you are coming from EDSA and are going towards SLEX, diba mya signs mga a km or 500m from the onramps.

Yung problema lang eh, say you want to go to Alabang, and you line up under the Alabang sign...you will find yourself actualyl lined up to go to Roxas blvd and not Alabang! Ang tanga ng sign p-lacement...o sinadya ba? People who do not pass here all the time will find themselves swerving kasi akala nila nasa tamang lane na sila dahil yun naman ang sinabi ng sign...pero hindi naman. Then when they change lanes para tama yung mapuntahan nila, they will be flagged down for swerving. Nabiktima na ako ng MMDA dito dati, pero nung finlag down ako, di ako tumigil. They can try to chase me...sa SLEX...goodluck na lang sa kanila hahahahha :D

[batang_raon14]

the flaw of this ramp is that the signs of a km away doesn't correspond to the road 300m BEFORE the ramp itself. IIRC, one lane for motorists going to Pasay, and 2 lanes for motorists going to Alabang (accdg. to the sign 1km. away). Pero pagdating mo sa ramp, due to the bus loading lanes and the center island itself, it's actually 2 lanes for Pasay and only 1 lane for Alabang. Kaya marami talagang nahuhuli na swerving dito. For more than 10 years na nga na katangahan yang area na yan at for more than 10 years na rin na veterans na ung mga nangongotong jan for "swerving" motorists.

Btw, youre lucky if you only get caught for "swerving". As for us, one of our truck hit that center island and tumaob, total wreck a year ago. Apparently bagong sabak sa maynila ung bago ring driver kaya hindi napansin ung center island and ayun... Kaya ingat ingat na lang jan... ESPECIALLY at NIGHT.

[wac3]

from my observation, a lot of mmda are watching out for potential swerving violators and this has been going on for a long time. it's time that some action be done to guide motorists approaching the area. i've also seen a lot of accidents involving motorists getting stuck on the island that separates the two flyovers.