The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA is looking at the viability of implementing daylight saving time on account of increasing volume vehicular traffic as Alert Level 1 is raised in Metro Manila.
A GMANEWS report stated that daylight saving time was among the recommendations received by the MMDA.
MMDA chairman Romando Artes said under daylight saving time, work schedule for government employees would be from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Artes said the one-hour difference would be a big factor not only for the state employees themselves but also for the general public having transactions with government offices.”
Based on MMDA data, the daily volume of vehicles along E. de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) before the COVID-19 pandemic was at 405,000 units. The figure, he said, went down to 390,000 shortly before the series of gasoline price increases, then to 370,000 as the oil prices spiraled further.
At present, number coding is being implemented along EDSA from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m, and the MMDA is mulling changes to the schedule.
Pump prices of petroleum products have increased for 11 straight weeks before fuel companies implemented a big-time rollback this week.
Effective March 22, oil firms rolled back gasoline price by P5.45 to P5.50 per liter, diesel by P11.45 to P11.50 per liter, and kerosene by P8.55 per liter, bringing the year-to-date adjustments at a net increase of P14.90 per liter for gasoline, P19.2 per liter for diesel and P16.35 per liter for kerosene.
Meanwhile, the MMDA said said since Metro Manila de-escalated to Alert Level 1 in the beginning of the month, the daily vehicle volume along EDSA is still short of the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level.
We still have not reached pre-pandemic level, especially along EDSA. Pre-pandemic, the volume there reached a peak of 405,00,” MMDA director Neomi Recio said. GMANEWS
