MMDA Chairman Tolentino's "brilliant" Ideas to Solve Traffic Problem in MM

[K.I.L.L.]

Though it is true that private cars take more space on the road, if the MMDA keeps on ignoring these buses, then Edsa will still be clogged though this time with buses since they'd all be blocking each other trying to compete for passengers much in the same way that jeepneys create illegal terminals everywhere.

I can imagine the challenge of resolving Manila's traffic woes must be fairly daunting but I think we need to take baby steps first and discipline all erring drivers so that Edsa can be continuously moving. But before that can happen, he needs to fix his own house first and weed out all the bad eggs inside the MMDA and by that, I mean the actual people on the ground like the enforcers who quickly disappear at the slightest hint of rain and are quick to turn a blind eye with public transport drivers. Anyway, here are my thoughts.

A. Fix the MMDA by weeding out lazy and corrupt enforcers and give everyone new training.
B. Move out bus terminals / garages out of Edsa and placing them at strategic deployment points.
C. Enforce drop-off and pick-up points as well as standardised waiting times for each bus.
D. Fix all the broken fences through which undisciplined pedestrians pass.
E. Create elevated walkways for pedestrians at important intersections and widen existing ones where possible. Take out the vendors too and make these safe by providing CCTV and roaming security.
F. Dismantle illegal jeepney terminals such as the one at the intersection of Roxas Boulevard and Edsa.
G. Disallow all tricycles, pedicabs, and other slow vehicles from using Edsa.
H. Only allow u-turn slots under flyovers / overpasses.
I. Put up new large and highly visible signs for exits, u-turn slots, intersections at least 750 metres away from these to allow motorists to prepare themselves to avoid swerving and crazy manoeuvres.
J. Put up a fence painted in red and yellow for buses to follow so that they don't get a chance at blocking the rest of traffic on Edsa.
K. Add more trains on the MRT, improve services and make it more efficient. Increase the fare as well to something more realistic. I feel a lot of people have their heads in the clouds when they say that the MRT fare is already expensive.
L. Fix the potholes and other road defects that make motorists slow down.
M. Terminals that are not on Edsa but has traffic that spills out on Edsa should be moved further out. These terminals are the ones similar to Shaw, Ortigas, Taft, etc. They should also not allow schools such as Lasalle (who probably is so liquid with cash) to use Ortigas as their own private parking area.
N. Malls are choke points. The MMDA should not allow more of these to be constructed on Edsa. Allowing them to be constructed on Edsa was really poor planning. They should make these malls create alternatives on how to lessen traffic in their respective areas. I think there are 8 malls on Edsa and each one of them is a big contributor to traffic.

[xwangbu]

pwede rin na pagalain nila yung nagkalat ng metal spikes sa edsa dati.

[cardict]

pwede rin na pagalain nila yung nagkalat ng metal spikes sa edsa dati.

Sir pag maraming na flat,lalong traffic,pero pag alam ng maraming drivers na may metal spikes sa EDSA,daming iiwas,so luluwag traffic,bright idea,calling atty.pamatong

[Monseratto]

The "stop where ever you please" mentality of the pinoy commuter...sila pa magagalit kung hinde pinababa agad.

Why the EDSA bus segregation system doesn't work

Why the EDSA bus segregation system doesn't work
by Michael Bueza
Posted on 07/20/2013 6:25 PM | Updated 07/21/2013 1:12 AM

MANILA, Philippines - A lot has been said about the horrific traffic situation in Metro Manila, especially on EDSA. Social media usually lights up with complaints whenever gridlock clogs the metro's main artery.

Much of the blame is directed at public utility buses (PUBs) for their supposed lack of discipline on the road. A recent study by the UP National Center for Transportation Studies reveals that it is 6 times riskier to take the bus than to ride your own car when commuting.

But just exactly how reckless are these bus drivers? Are they to blame?

To find out, I examined the effectiveness of the current MMDA Bus Segregation System (BSS) [Editor's note: We previously identified this as the EDSA Bus Rapid Transit System. We regret the error.] through a simple data-gathering activity.

Where do buses stop?

The BSS, implemented by the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), classifies all buses passing through EDSA into four: Bus A, Bus B, Bus C and Bus P. Each type of bus should load and unload passengers only in their respective bus stations (Bus A can only stop at Bus A stations, for example).

Bus C PUBs can stop in both Bus A and Bus B stations. Meanwhile, Bus P (provincial buses) can only stop in select Bus P stations.

For this data-gathering activity, I boarded Bus C PUBs and made 4 round trips on EDSA from Baclaran in Pasay City to Monumento, Caloocan City. I took note of where buses really load and unload commuters.

Based on the data, EDSA buses made a total of only 63 proper bus stops as compared to 356 incorrect bus stops – or nearly 6 improper stops for every proper one.

Most cases of improper loading and unloading were done in the following spots. I listed the number of instances:

•near footbridges that do not have bus stations - 59
•near the stairs of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) stations - 32
•in front of gas stations - 20
•near intersections where there are stoplights - 15
•in front of provincial bus terminals - 14

Who says where to load and unload? Not only the bus conductor, but also the passengers themselves. Public transport becomes a "private service" for some passengers when they signal bus conductors to stop where they find it convenient to disembark.

There were 35 instances when buses stopped at the correct bus stations, but did not load and unload at these stops. Why is that? Because passengers troop to both ends of the bus stations, not in the middle.

This is a regular scene in Cubao at the southbound side of EDSA where most buses load and unload passengers near the entrance of P. A. Bernardo Street and at the other end of the MRT Araneta Center-Cubao Station stairs, but not at the correct bus station in the middle of it.

In summary:
•EDSA buses stop where the commuters are, whether these commuters wait in correct bus stations or not
•Both the conductor and the passengers "call the shots" insofar as where buses stop

MMDA traffic enforcers are not regularly stationed in every bus station. I also observed that not all MMDA traffic enforcers strictly direct bus drivers to stop in designated stations.

There were even instances when buses unloaded in a wrong spot — in plain view of an MMDA official, but nothing was done to apprehend the erring drivers.

All these daily behaviors, plus about 12,000 buses plying EDSA, can spell only one thing: heavy traffic.

In conclusion, given the 6:1 ratio of incorrect to correct bus stops, the lack of discipline on the part of both bus drivers and passengers (coupled with inconsistent enforcement of traffic rules by MMDA officials), it comes as no surprise that the current EDSA bus segregation system has been failing miserably. - Rappler.com

[marktams86]

The "stop where ever you please" mentality of the pinoy commuter...sila pa magagalit kung hinde pinababa agad.

Why the EDSA bus segregation system doesn't work

every "brilliant idea" headed by chairman tolentino was never succesful anyway. lets count:
1) Motorcycle lane (sa simula lang)
2) Speed limit along commonwealth/macapagal
3) no smoking areas
4) lady enforcers
5) lady bus drivers
6) and everything else that i have forgotten which was cooked up by this hare brained tolentino. feel free to add..

[_Cathy_]

every "brilliant idea" headed by chairman tolentino was never succesful anyway. lets count:
1) Motorcycle lane (sa simula lang)..

They just made the roads uglier with those blue lanes. Isn't there an international standard that we are supposed to follow on road marking/signs etc? MMDA makes its own rules e