The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and its partner-agencies and local offices have intensified road clearing operations on the so-called on Mabuhay Lanes and other major streets in a bid to ease traffic in the metropolis.
The MMDA, in coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, National Capital Region Police Office, and local government units covered by identified Mabuhay Lanes, vowed to sustain the clearing and keeping the alternate routes free from all obstructions.
In a ceremonial send-off held in Baclaran, Pasay City, MMDA Chairman Romando Artes said that the agency will deploy three teams to clear Mabuhay Lanes that serve as alternative routes for motorists.
He said that the regular operations and eventual turnover of the cleared area to its barangay captain is part of the memorandum of agreement between the agency and the DILG to maintain the cleanliness and orderliness of the roads.
“We shall have no let-up in clearing the Mabuhay Lanes of different kinds of obstructions. That is a proof that the government is serious in making our key routes accessible,” he said.
“Everytime the MMDA, DILG, and the police force conduct clearing, it will be turned over to the barangay captain in charge of the area. Those who will fail to maintain its cleanliness and orderliness could be charged with an administrative case,” Artes warned.
DILG Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Felicito Valmocina said that their office now has a monitoring team that will coordinate with the DILG-NCR to ensure that Mabuhay Lanes are clean and clear.
“We will be employing new approaches to ensure commitment and prioritization of obstruction-free Mabuhay Lanes. It is high time for our LGUs, especially our barangay heads, to act and sustain our clearing efforts,” he said.
Mabuhay Lanes is the alternate inner routes used by private motorists avoiding the congested major thoroughfares.
Artes said the MMDA will seek the support of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. on plans to build a permanent area for vendors in Baclaran to provide them selling space that would keep them off the roads.
Pasay City Mayor Imelda Calixto-Rubiano expressed her full support to the plans of providing Baclaran vendors permanent space to sell, as well as clearing of the Mabuhay Lanes, as part of the city’s vision.
“We are one with the government agencies in making the landscape of our community better as this is one of the grand vision of Pasay – to become a sustainable and smart eco-city,” she said.