• NEWS
    • NATION
    • CORDILLERA
  • BUSINESS
  • GREEN
  • OPINION
    • EDITORIAL
  • FEATURE
  • FACT CHECK
  • HEALTH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • LITERATURE
  • SPORTS
  • ADVERTORIALS
  • ABOUT US
    • CONTACT US
Baguio Chronicle
  • NEWS
    • NATION
    • CORDILLERA
  • BUSINESS
  • GREEN
  • OPINION
    • EDITORIAL
  • FEATURE
  • FACT CHECK
  • HEALTH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • LITERATURE
  • SPORTS
  • ADVERTORIALS
  • ABOUT US
    • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
    • NATION
    • CORDILLERA
  • BUSINESS
  • GREEN
  • OPINION
    • EDITORIAL
  • FEATURE
  • FACT CHECK
  • HEALTH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • LITERATURE
  • SPORTS
  • ADVERTORIALS
  • ABOUT US
    • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Baguio Chronicle
No Result
View All Result
Home Feature

At least 80 percent of road space dedicated to private vehicles – is it time to consider alternatives?

Angel Castillo by Angel Castillo
September 17, 2022
in Feature, Green
Reading Time: 4 mins read
At least 80 percent of road space dedicated to private vehicles – is it time to consider alternatives?
11
SHARES
42
VIEWS

EIGHTY percent of road space is dedicated to private vehicles. This was one of the main talking points of the recent #FreeToMove (FTM) talks held in Baguio City, at the esteemed Camp John Hay.

Last Saturday, representatives of multiple sectors including various government entities met at the Camp for the FTM talks. 

FTM is a discussion on urban mobility, a topic that has become hotter and hotter as traffic continues to grow in the Philippines. Traffic remains a struggle for the common folk, many of whom have to contend with long queues and lengthened trips. While the worst of it is concentrated mainly in the National Capital Region (NCR), traffic continues to be an issue in urbanized areas such as Baguio City.

ADVERTISEMENT

And with projections suggesting that 68 percent of the national population will be in urban areas by 2050, it is a discussion that remains salient.

Data presented by one of the talk’s speakers, Ira Cruz, the director of advocacy group AltMobility PH (AMPH), indicates that 80 percent of all road space is dedicated to and consumed by private vehicles.

And yet, data also indicates that 88 percent of households in Metro Manila – and an average of more than 90 percent outside – do not own private vehicles. As Cruz would put it, “We are reserving 80 percent of our roads for 12 percent of the people.”

Data like this drives the core of the AMPH and the FTM advocacy. They see the current system as inefficient, prioritizing the wealthy few over the needs of the less fortunate many.

 

The advocacy

With such data informing their decisions, AMPH and the members of the FTM advocacy are advocating for a much-needed change. Alternative methods of transport are one of the big talking points here. In particular, they advocate for the inclusion of biking into the calculus of transportation, as well as the strengthening of public transport.

According to Cruz, while the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) has yet to reactivate all routes of public transport, which were already lacking prior to the pandemic, commuters continue to have to struggle with extremely packed, unreliable, and ultimately difficult public transportation systems.

“People have accepted the reality that commuting is hard, when in reality, it doesn’t have to be,” Cruz says.

Congestion, Cruz says, is a problem, but is a symptom of a root cause and not the cause itself. The cause, he says, is a system that prioritizes the few over the many.

“50 percent of city space is used for cars, and this doesn’t even include parking spaces. And there is induced demand when they widen the roads. Widening the roads just makes more people get cars. If you build it, they will come,” Cruz says.

But there is a limit. The roads can only be made so wide, and city space will be a limiting factor. So, instead, Cruz calls on local governments to build alternative transportation options.

Citing Pasig as an example, AMPH among other things advocates for the installation of a proper biking network of bike lanes and bike-friendly infrastructure instead of investing into more road widening projects that support private cars such as the planned Pasig River Expressway (PAREX). It should be no surprise that AMPH opposes the PAREX as opposed to its principles, being an expensive “solution” that would once again cater only to those that have private vehicles.

In addition to advocacies, the AMPH has also taken moves to partner with the government in hopes of getting action on the public transport issue. 

“We’ve presented our ‘low-hanging fruits,’ our easier demands for commuter welfare to the Department of Transportation (DOTr),” Cruz says. “We’ve pushed for the Magna Carta of Commuters in Congress. Political will really is important in this matter.”

Among the low hanging fruits are demands for sufficient public transportation that is at least capable of covering 15 kilometers per hour – a slow pace, but current figures in parts of congested Metro Manila are much slower.

Other pushes include the removal of incentives for on-street competition by strengthening the public transport system, and changing the compensation system for public transport stakeholders to ensure reliability.

While the most obvious example of the problems highlighted by AMPH are in Metro Manila, with projections of growing urbanization, it is likely to also become a talking point outside of the capital.

Cruz himself says that it is best to “start local, and start now.” Part of the advocacy thrust of the AMPH is to involve local governments, who best understand the needs on the ground, and who are best positioned to start reclaiming roads for commuter and biker use.

The AMPH also recommended to Baguio City to close certain streets permanently to vehicular traffic, and to dedicate their use to pedestrians and bikers. This is a push they have recommended to many local governments.

“Local governments were on the rise during the pandemic. We hope to capture that momentum and use it to help the commuters, the poorer majority,” Cruz said.

“We are really pushing for improving mobility for all, not just the few. The needs of the majority need to be met. And when you design for the most vulnerable, you design for all,” Cruz says.

ADVERTISEMENT
Previous Post

Cordillera technical institute launched in Baguio

Next Post

Kennon to reopen for Baguio traffic

Angel Castillo

Angel Castillo

Angel graduated with a bachelor's degree in Journalism from the University of the Philippines Baguio. As the youngest on the team, he writes on mental health and well being, and the millennial’s point of view.

Related Posts

Baguio waiting for Urdaneta landfill to reopen

January 23, 2023
MRF eyed in Sto. Tomas to cut down on waste disposal costs

MRF eyed in Sto. Tomas to cut down on waste disposal costs

January 23, 2023

Writ of Kalikasan for Sto. Tomas Forest Reserve affirmed in SC, ex-solon petition struck down

Ifugao Rice Terraces included in int’l protection initiative

Japan to launch agri assistance in Benguet

350 hectares of Benguet forest on fire

Latest Stories

Verhungern – Ad nauseam, ad infinitum

January 26, 2023

Grassroots Etc – Baguio on my mind…till we meet again

January 26, 2023

Fortnight – Why settle for a boring Baguio?

January 26, 2023

Baguio Chronicle

 

The Baguio Chronicle is the fastest- growing news publication in Northern Luzon today. It was established on December 6, 2009 in Baguio City.

© 2022 The Baguio Chronicle Website Design and Development by Neitiviti Studios.

No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
    • NATION
    • CORDILLERA
  • BUSINESS
  • GREEN
  • OPINION
    • EDITORIAL
  • FEATURE
  • FACT CHECK
  • HEALTH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • LITERATURE
  • SPORTS
  • ADVERTORIALS
  • ABOUT US
    • CONTACT US

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In