After 15 long years of public service, now in peril

Such irony of life–Motoring Today, the TV show that just celebrated its 15th aniverssary may just write "finito" or "finish" to its long history of public service to the motoring public and entertainment for all motor sports enthusiasts.

The reason? It’s a simple case of economics.

NBN, the National Broadcasting Network, the program’s carrying station for the past 15 long years, needs additional revenues for its own survival. One of the logical sources of such much-needed finances is the increase of airtime rates of ‘blocktimers’, like STV, Sunshine Television Ventures, producers of Motoring Today. The advertising industry, being where it is now, in dire straits, cannot absorb the 25 percent increase in airtime charges that NBN has implemented for Motoring Today. And this could leave STV no other choice but to painfully kill the program because it can no longer afford its airtime costs.

What a way to go!

I am not at all blaming NBN for this misfortune. They have to survive too. I look at them as much as a victim of the present economic downtrend, as we are. It’s just not that easy for me to end the life of a show that has made itself into an institution of public service, information and entertainment–a recognized and accepted "Sunday viewing habit."

Although, I still firmly believe that miracles still do happen. The show helps people, so He will not let it just die. Please join us in our prayers.

Changing of the guards

I bid my good friend, Harold Koh, outgoing president of General Motors Automobiles Philippines as he meets new challenges being the newly appointed president-director of General Motors Indonesia. I have my fond memories with Harold who has maintained an enviable degree of professionalism while in his post.

At the same time, I welcome Mr. James Lim, the new man at the helm of the local GM office. He has quite a remarkable set of credentials definitely qualifying him for the job. And James strikes me as a soft-spoken no-nonsense manager out to meet head-on the challenges of our hard-up local automotive market.

Mail call

Lest we find our volume of mail up to our nose again, please allow me to acknowledge some them now. But let me tell you, these readers of ours have stories tell, which all of us can learn from.

Mr. Nomer Son suggests, "The Balintawak Toll Plaza can save a lot of money and health by installing ‘Ticket Dispensers’ similar to those in banks, airline offices and even payment centers. This will save on manpower cost and save motorists from having to "streeech" to reach out for the ticket from "short armed" toll attendants who would not take the effort to reach out to motorists lest they inhale the poison expelled by smoke belching vehicles. Ticket dispenser machines while not absenting themselves, don’t eat, nor visit the CR, thus preventing jams at unmanned tollbooths. They also don’t pick their noses or scratch their whatever before handing you the tickets."

Well, what can I say, Nomer. You have been very graphic about your suggestion. Just in case our good friend Louie Sison, PNCC’s chairman and ceo, misses this, I’ll e-mail it myself to him.

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Jason Michael Dizon, a college student of an exclusive school in Mendiola writes, "I bring my own car to school since high school. However, I am very much bothered by the very expensive parking fee that the city government is collecting. The P20 parking ticket is heavy enough but the parking bantays tend to collect or even extort P20-P30 more despite the given ticket. They say they are also giving money to the police for protection. I am not the only one complaining about this but many of my schoolmates too. Please help us in getting rid of these extortionists.

If the good mayor of Manila would get wind of this, knowing him, he will not tolerate it. I hope he or his aides get to read this. Otherwise, I hope Mayor Lito Atienza regularly reads his e-mail. Now, if this falls within the MMDA realm, its newly installed head honcho, Chairman Bayani Fernando should lose no time in curbing this criminal practice.

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Mr. Romeo M. Francisco, a retired bank employee from Tacloban City suggests to let traffic flow freely along Aurora Blvd., in Cubao and remove the traffic lights and disallow left turns. Those who wish to turn left to Aurora Blvd. must go straight along EDSA and turn right at the first corner and do a cloverleaf turn to Aurora and cross EDSA.

I agree with you Mr. Francisco that that’s the most ideal traffic engineering design in areas where there are overpass/underpass in EDSA or anywhere else in the metropolis. But the reality of going through the arduous legal tasks of buying rights of way to put the required infrastructure in place make it impractical in most, if not all cases. We hope though that this suggestion of yours would help guide planners of future projects in the metropolis.

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A daily user of the SLEX, Mr. Lope Severino, voices his concerns about two dangerous and "cruel to the suspension" spots on the toll way, "Southbound, as you exit C-5, a large and lengthy portion of the roadway is not level, it is wavy and very harsh on the suspension and driver, extending to several hundred meters and all the more pronounced on the right side of this stretch. Northbound, before Nichols as you near the tollgate on the two rightmost lanes, you will find a abrupt dip in the road akin to an inverted speed hump, only deeper." He also cannot understand why the LTO, despite its concern for motor vehicles to pass emission test prior to registration, allow the tricycles to operate when they pollute the air much more?

I shall forward your observations to the PNCC while I join you in pondering about the LTO’s seeming helplessness in getting rid of tricycles, even just in areas where they should not be. As I have written before, time and again, the MMDA and all the local governments have their own share of this grossly overlooked responsibility.

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A regular reader, Mr. Ramon Infante disagrees about painting the many ‘speed bumps’ or humps that proliferate the metropolis, most of them placed without neither rhyme nor reason. He insists that they all be removed. He adamantly declares.

Well Mr. Infante, I cannot agree with you any much more. You know by now, based on what I write here, what I feel about those humps in the metropolis. I also furiously harp on its menacing, annoying and suspension-damaging existence on the Public Service portion of our TV show Motoring Today, but to no avail. Most of the local government leaders may be more concerned about being reelected than looking into this vital motoring concern. But as they say, "Mapikon talo!" so let’s just patiently remind our mayors repetitively about this crucial concern.

Happy Motoring!!!

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