Monday, March 31, 2008 Transport regional chief gets city backing By Jane Cadalig
THE Department of Transportation and Communication's (DOTC) ban on public utility vans plying Kennon Road has not only become a tug-of-war between two line agencies as even the local governments are clashing over it.
While the Benguet Provincial Government is pushing for the cancellation of the order re-routing vans traversing Kennon to Palispis-Aspiras Highway, officials of Baguio City support the move.
"The Baguio City Government supports the move of DOTC regional office in providing safety for passengers as well as drivers of public utility vehicles," a resolution passed by the City Council stated.
"It is public knowledge several motorists were killed and damage to property have occurred along Kennon due to landslides and the DOTC regional office took the initial step to protect motorists by rerouting the inter-regional vans from Kennon to Palispis-Aspiras (formerly Marcos Highway), which is designed to be an all-weather road and safer to traverse," it added.
The City Council further asked the transportation department to include in the rerouting scheme heavy trucks, saying despite the ban imposed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), several heavy trucks still traverse the road.
Transportation Regional Director Federico Mandapat Jr. banned lowland vans from plying Kennon to protect motorists and passengers from the hazards of the landslide prone thoroughfare.
Complaints of longer travel time and additional expenses from van drivers and operators prompted the Benguet Provincial Board (PB) to ask Mandapat to reconsider his move, a request the DOTC official denied.
The PB said Mandapat's order has caused inconvenience to residents of Tuba.
Mandapat stood pat on his stand, saying he is merely implementing the directive of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for the DOTC to ensure road safety.
He said his order could not cause inconvenience to commuters of Tuba, as they have their own passenger jeepneys to service them to and from Baguio. Vans, he said, could not be the solution to lack of transportation since these are not allowed to load passengers along Tuba.
The DPWH has also called on Mandapat to reconsider his order, saying it has the sole authority to regulate roads.
