Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada has started clearing roads leading to the Port of Manila to relieve port and traffic congestion.
This morning, Estrada led the clearing of the access road of the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) in Tondo that for years has been clogged with hundreds of kuligligs or motorized pedicabs and countless shanties and illegal structures.
The terminal is located between the Manila North Harbor and the Manila South Harbor and can be accessed by road through the MICT South Access Road.
Dennis Alcoreza of the Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau (MTPB) said the road has three lanes but only one lane was left open because of the obstructions on the road and its sidewalks.
During rush hour, Alcoreza said, the line of stalled vehicles reaches as far back as R-10 and Anda Circle on Bonifacio Drive, and up to Padre Burgos Avenue.
The Manila mayor personally supervised members of Task Force Manila Cleanup in removing and impounding hundreds of parked kuligligs, tearing down makeshift stalls and shanties, and hauling way debris and trash on the 1.1-kilometer long road.
“These obstructions are the cause of the perpetual traffic jam that has been hampering the efficient operation of the major seaports, particularly MICT,” Estrada said.
“We have to open an unimpeded path for thousands of container trucks going to and from the container terminal and relieve congestion on R-10 and Bonifacio Drive all the way to Roxas Boulevard,” he added.
Estrada said owners of the motorized pedicabs have made the road their garage and repair depot, causing horrendous traffic jams. “We prioritize this road because the big container trucks use it.”
Estrada said the road clearing will benefit not only the City of Manila but the entire country as well because of the unimpeded cargo-handling operations at the ports, which bring millions of revenues for the national government, and employment and economic opportunities for thousands of Filipinos.
Operated by International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), the MICT is one of Asia’s major seaports and the Philippine’s largest international container terminal in terms of volume and capacity and serves 65 percent of the shipments at the Port of Manila.
In 2011, MICT ranked 38th place in the list of the world’s busiest ports with container traffic of 3,260,000.
After the clearing, the MTPB chief said they will put up an outpost in the area to prevent the return of the vendors and drivers of the motorized pedicabs.
Raul Venturina, the MICT community relations manager, conveyed the port management’s thanks to Estrada.
Venturina said the clearing of the access road will definitely help relieve port congestion and also ensure the safety of informal settlers in the adjacent communities.
“At least 3,000 container trucks pass through this access road 24 hours a day so if this road is opened up again, container traffic will definitely speed up. And of course this is also for the safety of the residents,” he said.
“Malaking bagay na ma-clear ito. Mababawasan na ‘yung delay sa delivery ng mga cargo. Hindi na mata-traffic, and of course, this will contribute to faster economic progress,” he added.