The Metro Manila Development Authority is giving irresponsible motorists and barangay officials a heads up on the renewed metro-wide crackdown on illegal parking and road obstruction set to begin next week.
MMDA chairman Danilo Lim said his agency is working with the Department of the Interior and Local Government and members of the Metro Manila Council, which is composed of the 17 mayors in the National Capital Region, to clamp down on activities that obstruct traffic flow and endanger road users.
He added stricter law enforcement action against undisciplined drivers and irresponsible barangay officials will be imposed.
The move came after President Rodrigo Duterte, during his second State of the Nation Address, said that he wants all road in the country's biggest cities cleared of all illegally parked vehicles to ensure a smooth flow of traffic in the metropolis.
The government's road and bridge projects will mean nothing if they will remain filled by illegally parked vehicles and other obstructions, the President had said.
Duterte said he directed the MMDA and the local government units to immediately clear the roads and major thoroughfares of all unnecessary obstruction including vehicles parked on the street. He added he is planning to have a golden age of infrastructure under his term with big-ticket projects such as roads, airports, and bridges.
"Just like what President Duterte said during his Sona, the MMDA and the LGUs will work together to clear all obstructions. Our objective is to reduce traffic congestion and ensure pedestrian safety," said Lim.
Authorities said they would target critical areas during busy periods, including bus stops and no-stopping zones, which are notorious for illegal parking and illegal picking up and dropping of passengers and goods.
Crackdown on illegal vendors, illegal transport terminals and sidewalk stalls without permits will also intensify to further ease traffic in Metro Manila, especially on identified chokepoints along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue from Taft Avenue in Pasay City to Balintawak in Quezon City.
Lim said his agency will also come up with an agreement with the DILG to give more teeth into the campaign and make recommendation to penalize barangay officials who would be remiss in their duty.
"We will take photos of the violators, turn them over to the barangay captains and once they [violators] return, we will hold them responsible," said Lim, who suggested that a minimum of six-month suspension be meted out against irresponsible barangay officials.
The government is hoping that through this persistent campaign, it will be able to change the selfish behavior of most of these irresponsible drivers and individuals violating traffic rules.
"We will constantly communicate with the LGUs, particularly with the mayors and barangay officials and remind them what was the President's directives and that we need to take it seriously," said Lim.
The MMDA observed that loading and unloading of bus passengers in non-designated areas and the wanton disregard of public and private motorists to traffic rules are the main reasons why there is road congestion.
Citing the lack of MMDA personnel to manage traffic, Lim said the MMDA needs the cooperation of the local governments and community leaders to enforce the traffic rules and regulations.
To date, MMDA has only a total of 2,368 traffic enforcers doing three shifts. These personnel are spread over 197 kilometers of major roads and thoroughfares in Metro Manila.
MMDA traffic engineering center chief Noemi Recio said the ideal number of people to control and manage the traffic flow in the National Capital Region is 7,000.
She said Edsa alone needs at least 1,000 traffic personnel that will be assigned at seven major choke points—Balintawak Market Road, Aurora Boulevard, Ortigas Avenue, Shaw Boulevard, Guadalupe, Ayala Avenue and Taft Avenue.
"We need more people to manage these choke points. We need at least 1,000 men along Edsa, that's the ideal," Recio said.