Saturday, February 02, 2008 Editorials: ‘No scheme’ traffic setup
THE call for Ban-Tal residents to endure the mess created by the construction of a flyover in Banilad is but a variation of the “tighten your belt” preaching of economists.
People not forced to go through the suffering are usually the ones agreeing to it.
It is very likely, for example, that officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) 7 who are making that call don’t pass Banilad roads on a daily basis.
But will ordinary commuters be as understanding, especially because the magnitude of the suffering could have been lessened had officials been more determined?
Passing the buck
Consider the “no scheme” traffic setup that the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) is resorting to after the odd-even traffic experiment failed.
With instant traffic experts and geniuses in planning roaming City Hall, the use of a “no scheme” traffic setup as flyover work starts is not only surprising but is frustrating.
Just listen to Citom’s Arnel Tancinco: “Based on what we agreed with the mayor, we will give the people a chance to find their own solution to the problem.”
Meaning, government responsibility is being passed on to the taxpayers.
Acting smug
But at least the City Council and Citom showed concern and hatched a traffic plan to ease the expected suffering of commuters, unlike DPWH 7 officials who acted smug.
They seem oblivious to worries expressed by city officials and Ban-Tal residents.
Focus
To be fair to City Hall, the “no scheme” traffic setup will work if Citom closely monitors the progress of the flyover work and acts immediately on problems that crop up.
Here, the actual traffic situation is the dry run, meaning, what happens daily is an experiment, a setup that will be doubly taxing to commuters caught in traffic gridlocks.
It will also test the resolve of Citom, who will have to focus more on the Ban-Tal area by deploying additional enforcers there and continuously observing traffic flow.
Meaning, this will be the longest six months (that is, if DPWH and the flyover contractor make good their promise) for everybody.
