Metro Manila experiences high traffic throughout the day, especially during the rush hour – making visiting Manila these days a nerve-wracking experience.
We got stuck in the horrendous traffic up north two Fridays ago on our way to Valenzuela from the SM Megamall in EDSA, Mandaluyong. Since it took us about two hours to get there, it was a truly horrible experience. We discovered that a worldwide singing star was in town and doing a two-day performance at Bulacan’s biggest venue.
But wait till you encounter the level of traffic that currently plagues Manila. It happens every day, yet the local officials appear to do nothing and pay no attention to what is going on in and around their enormous city. Chaos began to spread over the streets of Manila a few months after the new government took office.
With a vengeance, public utility vehicles started to take over the streets as they established pick-up stations for commuters at various locations throughout Manila. In Manila now, there are more tricycles than jeepneys, and they rule the streets. They are free to leave even on Manila’s busiest streets and park wherever they like for the duration of the day. And where are the infamous Manila traffic cops that the previous mayor of Manila employed to increase the amount of money collected for the city’s coffers?
In any case, they are perceived to be highly busy catching drivers who would break the law because of those complicated stop lights that the city had installed all around, as opposed to patrolling the street corners where heavy traffic is a daily occurrence. To add, the free flow of vehicles and pedestrians is completely blocked by the return of illegal sellers, who are once again operating openly on the streets.
Roadwork is ongoing everywhere. In Manila, numerous streets are either closed for construction or being dug up for various reasons. There are excavations for a variety of purposes, including water supply, flood control, and cementing. Consider the impact on traffic if just one street were closed. Additionally, the majority of them are shut down for several days at a time with little to no employee activity. Most of them have 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. employment hours. The following 16 hours are being squandered on that foundation.
The closure of the Lagusnilad, which is just in front of the Manila city hall, has made the already terrible traffic situation in Manila even worse. If you don’t want to spend the entire day stuck in horrendous traffic, never, ever attempt to pass this road when traveling south.
I guess my point is… Are we doing anything about this?
