Traffic is moderate on the highway along Barangay Mambaling in Cebu City in this photo taken August 20, 2020. CDN Digital file photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama plans to hold a traffic summit before the May 9 elections to discuss the city’s traffic management concerns.
The planned traffic summit will be scheduled after the city’s Solid Waste Management (SWM) summit slated from April 6 to 8, 2022.
Rama said there is now a pressing need to discuss the current state of city roads and how traffic here is being managed.
He has appointed Councilor James Cuenco, chairperson of the transportation committee of the City Council, to spearhead the traffic summit in coordination with the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO).
“There was a highlight regarding the preparations being done on the traffic summit. I will be connecting with James (Cuenco) to be empowered with matters of traffic,” Rama said.
Cuenco said in an earlier interview that there are various issues surrounding the city’s traffic management.
One is the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project that has been lagging behind schedule despite the national government’s promise to already start its implementation in the last quarter of 2021.
He said that the resumption of onsite work also contributes to congestion concerns while this also stresses the gap between public transportation demand and supply.
Cuenco said modern jeepneys are not coming in as fast as they should. Operators and drivers of traditional jeepneys, on the other hand, are also suffering from the series of fuel price increases.
There is also a pending concern from the Sugbo Bike Lanes Board (SBLB) to expand the bike lanes to already include interior roads.
Rama said he wanted all these issues addressed during the traffic summit that will be participated by the with the city and other stakeholders.
“I want to hear the stakeholders,” said the mayor.
Meanwhile, CCTO has apprehended over 10,000 traffic violators from January to March 2022.
Violations include parking in no parking areas, use of expired registration, lack of drivers licenses, and parking on designated bike lanes among others.
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/ dcb