A photo of traffic personnel in Cebu City last August 28, 2022 | Photo from CCTO
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Cebu City Traffic Management Committee (TMC) has approved a traffic management plan for Undas 2023 or Kalag-Kalag 2023 on Tuesday, October 24.
Cebu City Councilor Rey Gealon, TMC head, said that the committee made sure that there would be allotted parking spaces for every visitor who would pay to visit their loved ones in the cemeteries.
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Cordon parking areas in Cebu City cemeteries
“Ato sad i-cordon ang mga area diin atong gi-designate ang mga parking spaces kay syempre kinahaglan man sila oras sad nga mustandby didto sa menteryo,” Gealon said in an interview with the reporters on Wednesday, October 25.
(We will also cordon the area where parking spaces are designated because, of course, they would need hours to standby there at the cemetery.)
No ‘hard and fast rule’
Gealon said that there would be no “hard and fast rule” for parking duration.
“Lenient kaayo ta ana. They can take as much time. Anyway, dili man ta magkagubot kay atong field personnel kay naa gyud sa area,” he said.
(We are very lenient on that. They can take as much time. Anyway, we would be in trouble because our field personnel would be in the area.)
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N. Bacalso, North Reclamation Area in Cebu City
According to Gealon, the committee would deploy traffic personnel in N. Bacalso southbound and North Reclamation Area to also guide people who will go out of town to celebrate Undas or the Kalag-Kalag.
“Kana sad mga adlawa, daghan taga diri sa syudad nga manggawas sa probinsya kay tungod toa sa ilang mga hometown ang mga minahal nila sa kinabuhi na gilubong,” he said.
(On those days, many of those in the city would go out to the province, because their hometowns are there and their loved ones were buried there.)
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Directions, parking signs
The committee already prepared directions and parking signs to guide graveyard attendees during Undas or the Kalag-Kalag.
Moreover, the councilor mentioned that there would be no day off for field traffic personnel from October 30 to November 2 to ensure a seamless traffic flow during both the election and the Undas or Kalag-Kalag season.
“Kinahanglan naay mo-man nga mga traffic enforcers. Kinahanglan naay modirect sa traffic flow,” he said.
(There should be traffic enforcers who would man the traffic. There should be someone who would direct the traffic flow.)
Meanwhile, the city councilor said there would be no complete road closures during Undas to give way for emergency vehicles to go through.
According to the councilor, it is in their policy to only grant partial road closures for such events.
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‘No full road closure’
“Dili gyud ta mahimo og total road closure kay simbako if naay mga emergency, like sunog, makaagi pa ang bombero. Naay mga medical emergencies, mga ambulansya kinahanglan makaagi,” he said.
(We cannot do total road closures because God forbid, if there are emergencies, like fires, the firefighters can pass. If there are medical emergencies, the ambulance can pass through.)
3 conditions for candidates
However, in events like the miting de avance, Gealon emphasized the three conditions to candidates who requested road closures.
The first condition is there should be no full road closures. Second, event commencement must be scheduled only during post-peak hours, preferably after 9 p.m.
And lastly, there should be no installation of signage or structures on the roads.
Gealon encouraged the public to visit cemeteries early to avoid being ensnared in heavy traffic caused by the influx of visitors.
The implementation of partial road closures will be observed in Carreta, Calamba, Pardo, Queen City, Labangon, Cempark, and the Chinese cemeteries.
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