CEBU City Councilor Renato “Jun” Osmeña Jr. has urged the city government to take action against roadside self-service car wash stations in the city to prevent vehicular accidents from happening.
During the City Council’s regular session Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, Osmeña filed a resolution asking the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) to strictly implement City Ordinance (CO) 801 or the Cebu City Traffic Code, especially in the mountain barangays. The resolution was adopted on the same day.
Osmeña said many incidents have occurred because of motorcycles and cars that were illegally parked along the road while being cleaned in the washing stations.
“The washing of motorcycles and vehicles along the road poses danger to the unsuspecting motorists passing by the area who are at risk of figuring in an accident due to the wet and slippery road,” said Osmeña.
Section 7, Article 14 of CO 801 states that “no person shall park a vehicle upon any roadway for the principal purpose of washing, greasing or repairing such vehicle except repairs necessitated by an emergency.”
The councilor is also asking the City Treasurer’s Office and the Business Permit Licensing Office to check if car wash stations in the city have the necessary permits to operate.
In a separate interview, Councilor James Anthony Cuenco, chairman of the committee on transportation, proposed that personnel from the Prevention, Restoration Beautification, and Enhancement (Probe) should also be asked to assist in monitoring car wash stations.
Separately, CCTO executive director Paul Gotiong said their office will only conduct the inspection and documentation on car wash stations but the clearing should be done by Probe.
Gotiong also mentioned that before the resolution was passed, the CCTO had penalized vehicle owners who are washing their cars along the city’s roads.