Saturday, February 02, 2008 ‘Worse traffic’ next week By Rene H. Martel Sun.Star Staff Reporter With Mia E. Abellana
PRELIMINARY work on the Banilad flyover started yesterday, with heavier-than-usual traffic seen around the construction site.
But the full brunt of the closure of two of four lanes of Gov. Mariano Cuenco Ave. will only be felt in the middle of next week, said City Councilor Sylvan Jakosalem.
Jakosalem spoke with project engineer Christoffer Semilla yesterday and was told that WTG Construction and Development Corp. will close two lanes for the next few days “on need basis” only.
If only a lane is being worked on instead of two, for instance, then three lanes will be available to motorists.
WTG promised that while construction is for the next six months or so, a lane for each direction will be left for motorists to use.
The only moment full road closure is required will be when they set up the girders, or the horizontal concrete beams supporting the flyover span.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), however, assured it will only be done during the night, specifically around midnight, when traffic is very light.
Semilla, though, said they will close the two inside lanes by Wednesday or Thursday next week, when construction will go full blast.
Yesterday, WTG workers did some excavation and marking, and closed two lanes. But since the work did not take the whole day, one more lane was later opened.
WTG also set up several signs and markers to guide commuters and motorists.
Avoidance
City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) Executive Officer Arnel Tancinco said he was informed that WTG arrived at the area at 9 a.m.
He said initial reports he got was that traffic was heavier than usual after the contractor closed two lanes.
Banilad Barangay Captain Malou Tabar, though, observed fewer vehicles during the morning rush, which she attributed to private car owners anticipating heavy traffic and avoiding the area.
She advised people to avoid passing through the construction site if they have nothing very important to do in Banilad, or at least use other routes.
This way, she said, they avoid being inconvenienced and at the same time contribute to unclogging traffic.
Yesterday, Banilad barangay officials distributed leaflets and flyers advising road users to avoid the construction site as much as possible.
Discipline
Several traffic enforcers and policemen were deployed early in the morning for the start of the construction.
In a TV Patrol interview, City Police Office Director Patrocinio Comendador encouraged discipline and road courtesy as one way of cushioning the impact of the construction.
“By nature, gusto gyud ta nga hayahay ta pirmi. There will be a time in our life when we need to deal with hardships,” Comendador told reporters yesterday.
The Citom warned it will strictly implement a “no fault zone” in Banilad, specifically at the stretch of Gov. Cuenco Ave. from the Mahiga Bridge junction (Gaisano Country Mall) to beyond the A.S. Fortuna St. intersection.
All vehicles are barred from stopping or unloading passengers anywhere near the construction site.
Also, in separate interviews, both Rep. Raul del Mar (Cebu City, north district) and Vice Mayor Michael Rama denied they had an argument yesterday.
Spirited
“It was a spirited discussion. It was normal and nothing to get excited about. It was just an exchange of differing opinions,” del Mar said.
He asked, though, that talk of the possible postponement of the construction be set aside now, and instead they all should work together to lessen the inconvenience as much as possible.
In last Wednesday’s session, Rama asked if the DPWH could possibly put off building the flyover until it acquires the lots on both sides of the construction site for the road expansion.
But del Mar said construction has already started and the best thing to do is to think of ways to alleviate the expected traffic mess.
Rama said the City Council last Wednesday created a committee that will monitor the project so they could be “ready to be of assistance.”
Tancinco said they will continue monitoring the area to determine what measures to take up to help ease the traffic problem.
Acceptance
He said that although Citom no longer has to contend with the odd-even scheme for taxis and private vehicles and rerouting for jeepneys, he is now more concerned about the health of the traffic enforcers.
He said Citom lacks personnel that a single enforcer who calls in sick means the loss of a reliable person to help ease traffic flow in Banilad.
All measures to reduce the number of vehicles passing Gov. Cuenco Ave. are possible solutions to the traffic situation, be it having an odd-even scheme or banning private vehicles, Comendador said.
“But it all depends on how the community accepts these measures,” Comendador added, after he was asked for his thoughts on the odd-even scheme and the banning of private vehicles.
He also asked drivers to be patient, follow traffic rules and “bear with the traffic situation.”
Comendador has assigned uniformed police personnel in the area who are also trained in traffic enforcement to support the traffic enforcers.
He also plans to bring back the “bust bus” there for 24 hours to complement the security personnel once construction starts. The bus is a mobile police station complete with an investigator to handle complaints. (RHM/With MEA)
