“Unbearable,” says one Mary Leanda, a daily commuter who has had enough of the traffic situation in Cebu City. “It would've been understandable if the new roads are great, but the roads are subpar at most.” She also points out that two-lane roads become useless due to vehicles that part on the sides, reducing the road into just one-lane.”
And as is illustrated by data from Land Transportation Office, private motor vehicles are increasing in number, while roads are left unable to accommodate this surge.
The Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) have also recorded traffic accidents are consistently high. As CCTO’s Education Department Head Amy Maestrado says, another reason behind traffic accidents and congestion are pedestrians that don’t cross where they should and commuters that embark & disembark at improper places.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) conducted a study that found Cebu City is suffering an economic loss of P.1.1 billion per day. There was even a day where motorists were trapped in traffic for 7 hours on the South Road Property.
Attorney Ishamael Garaygay of CCTO says that the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit System (BRT) will be their solution, as this will lessen traffic because one bus will be able to carry more passengers as 3 jeepneys, with buses required to allow passengers to embark and disembark at set bus stops. This will help with internal discipline, plus adding standard to the service.
Many still feel hopeless about undergoing the torture of the city’s traffic daily, no more so than Grab driver Ardy Oftana Derial.
“I don’t think this will ever get any better at all, even if the BRT is introduced”, he says in Cebuano.
Angkas, which many have hailed as a great solution to get out of being stuck in traffic, has now been ordered to cease operation due to the LTFRB resolution No. 095. Many are upset by this, as their one way of getting to and from places during rush hour will now be gone.
“Traffic is an age-old problem and the digital world might be able to provide a way to fix it if it were given a chance,” says freelance web solutions provider John Paul Madulid.
With this new obstacle to traffic, Cebu City needs to get their BRT system underway and for the Philippines to actually replace old laws — that led to Angkas needing to cease operation — for new ones that will better fit the current tech age.