Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada on Monday placed the city’s emergency units on standby to assist commuters who would be stranded by the two-day mass transport strike of jeepney drivers and operators.
As early as dawn, the Manila District Traffic Enforcement Unit of the Manila Police District as well as the Manila Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office have been monitoring the situation closely, according to Estrada.
The strike was organized by transport group Stop and Go Transport Coalition in protest of the government’s plan to phase out old passenger jeepneys.
“We have units on standby. If the situation requires it, we have available vehicles to ferry stranded commuters and we have sufficient police and traffic personnel on the ground,” Estrada said.
Based on the contingency plans MDTEU has prepared, the trucks will be fielded along España Avenue to ferry stranded commuters up to Welcome Rotonda, and along Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard from V. Mapa to Plaza Avelino, the MDTEU chief said.
MDRRMO, meanwhile, has also readied its two amphibious trucks for immediate deployment.
The Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau under Director Dennis Alcoreza was also placed on full alert to manage traffic, Estrada added.
Chief Insp. Alejandro Pelias, MDTEU officer-in-charge, said at least two six-by-six trucks have been readied to offer free rides to commuters, particularly women, elderly, and persons with disabilities.
As of noon, public transport in Manila had not been paralyzed, he said.
“In case the situation worsens, we will field these two trucks, and other available vehicles,” Pelias assured.
“If the Mayor directs us to deploy or if the Metro Manila DRRM request us for deployment, then that’s the time that we will move,” MDRRMO chief Danny Yu said.
The MDRRMO’s Command and Control Center at the City Hall, he said, has been monitoring developments in the transport strike.