Metro Manila needs mega bus terminals

The recent move of City of Manila top executive Mayor Alfredo S. Lim has been long awaited by many motorists of Metro Manila. Although many wish that other mayors of the metro would follow suit and adopt similar strong-willed measures to help de clog the streets by reducing the number of behemoth buses for the convenience of motorists and pedestrians alike.

A recent order from the Manila City Hall has banned the entry of provincial buses and their unhampered use of the Plaza Lawton area as their private terminal.

According to the mayor’s chief of staff, Mr. Rick de Guzman, another reason why the good mayor decided on the radical order is to disperse suspicion that bribe money is changing hands in order to ensure the continued operation of provincial bus terminals in the Plaza Lawton area, which is just a stone’s throw away from the Manila City Hall, the seat of power of the country’s capital.

Aside from the presence of too many buses plying the streets of the metro, many of which are known to be “colorum” vehicles or those that do not have franchises to operate, the wanton entry of provincial buses have always been opined to contribute greatly to the unwarranted number of vehicles traveling through the metro causing tremendous traffic buildup.

Making the problem worse is the existence of quite a number (meaning many) of provincial bus terminals right inside the metro, aside from that in Plaza Lawton. Some of them are even located in side streets, where their humongous-sized buses take quite a long time maneuvering in or out of the terminals causing horrendous traffic grid locks in the process.

I remember that some years back there were talks that mega bus terminals, exclusively for provincial buses would be put up on both North and South entry points of the metro. The buses, coming from either direction would load and unload passengers in these terminals and would not be allowed to roam the streets of Metro Manila and add to its congestion.

I am not privy to whatever happened to the plan but I strongly believe that it would be a good move and may even prove to be advantageous to many parties – the bus operators would save on the fuel that would be spent on the stop and go traffic of the metro, streets would logically be less clogged with the diminished number of big vehicles making it more convenient for all motorists, less vehicles running means less fumes and less pollution, etc.

What the government can do is appropriate some state-owned land or expropriate, if need be, for the purpose and look for a private enterprise to built-and-operate the facility.

For the benefit of the bus operators, the lease rates of their individual terminals should be regulated and should be just enough for the terminal operator to meet requirements of a long-term amortization period for their investment plus some modest regulated gains.

To make it convenient for the public to access the mega terminals, a “special express shuttle” with exclusively designated stops that would traverse EDSA to and from the two mega bus terminals should be put up.

National and local elections are less than a month away and there may or may not be a change of the brand of leadership and style of governance after. Whoever gets to take the overall reins of government should look at this possibility, which would produce a win-win scenario for all – especially for the general motoring public.

Bert back on his berth

The no-nonsense former chief of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), Bert Suansing is back with his no-nonsense running of one of the government’s most controversial agencies, which needs no less than a no-nonsense manager to keep it running straight.

It has been reported that coming immediately from being the chairman of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), one of Bert’s first moves as “balik-LTO chief” was to suspend the operation of a bus line whose driver grievously erred by running away from the LTO chief who caught him operating one of its buses without registration plates.

When we said Chairman Bert Suansing is “no-nonsense” we really meant “no-nonsense” so you guys better shape up or ship out – to another kind of business or profession.

With the return of Mr. Suansing to the LTO I sincerely hope that he would be able to pursue one of his original pet projects, which is to make drivers of Public Utility vehicles applying for renewal of their professional licenses to once again take and pass the required written, oral and practical tests. I remember the LTO chief was close to being “hell bent” on implementing this bold but arguably effective measure before he was transferred to the LTFRB, if only to ensure that these public utility drivers indeed have the skills and capability to safely transport the riding public.

Damned if you do, damned if you don’t, Bert – then perhaps just do it!

The new Vios – not only for the young

“In response to overwhelming requests, many lady drivers included, we now have the 1.5-liter variant’s gate-type automatic transmission with Super ECT made available for the 1.3E variant of the 2010 Vios line up as well,” declared Mr. Raymond Rodriguez, 1st vice president for vehicle sales of Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation (TMPC) during a chat we had while having coffee during the launch of the 2010 Vios. Raymond was particularly emphatic about TMPC’s giving importance to the lady drivers’ penchant for the convenience and comfort of driving small cars with automatic transmission.

With its Philippine debut in 2003 and coming in as the initial entrant into the local market’s sub-compact automobile category, the Vios has made a mark in the industry by dominating the segment for over six years registering cumulative sales of 62,790 as of February 2010.

The refreshed 2010 Vios comes with a redesigned front grille, front bumper and fog lamps, multi-reflector headlamps, side view mirror-integrated turn signal lights, 15” alloy wheels and new rear combination lamps.

Added features inside include a leather steering wheel with audio controls and an auxiliary port for audio players.

A visit to any of its nationwide showrooms and a test drive would be a better way to appreciate what’s new in the 2010 Vios.

As you read this item a bevy of motoring journalists are pounding the roads of Iloilo for an extensive long hours of test drive of all the variants of the 2010 Vios, this year’s exclusive model for scrutiny for the traditional Toyota Road Trek.

We hope to give you a feed back of its performance next time.

Another “baffled” Honda owner

Two weeks ago we published a letter sent to us by one of our readers regarding his puzzlement on the silence of local Honda executives regarding published reports in foreign news sections regarding the “recall” of some of their automobile models, some of which are being distributed in the Philippines. Another reader has written to express similar concerns and requests to have some space in our column. Verbatim here’s the letter from Engr. Ronnie Alberto of Makati City.

“I was reading with deep concern your column (Honda silence baffles March 31) regarding the inexplicable silence of Honda in the Phils. about massive recalls of some of their models.

Among my cars are Accord and Civic and that made me reach out for the internet to find out more about what seems to be Honda recalls that are being kept from the local market. And lo and behold, I found out in the internet that 400,000 plus models of Accord, Civic, Odyssey, CRV and the Acura for similar driver side airbag problem. I also found out that the Honda Fit (Jazz in the Philippines) also have recalls due to a faulty window switch that can cause fire when in contact with excessive liquid. For your readers’ information, those interested can just type Honda recall while searching on the web.

I agree with your reader who wrote you about this that the local Honda should come up with a statement regarding these recalls, as to whether models in the Phils are affected or not. This is the least they can do to those who bought their cars and put their trust in their names.

I hope this finds space in your column Mr. Gamboa. Thank you and keep up the good work”.

Thank you for your letter Engr. Alberto. I do need to apologize to you and to our other reader, Mr. Chris Velasco, who also wrote in to express his concern regarding the silence of local Honda executives regarding this vital issue. My apologies are for presuming that these executives read my column and would send in their reaction to the concern or for presuming that this column‘s contents matter at all to them. I guess the right thing for me to do is send these friends of mine copies of your e-mail. They may just want to limit their response to those who are asking.

Motoring Tip of the Week

Our motoring tip this week is more of a safety riding tip for motorcyclists who seem to hug the news more often due to the mounting accidents that they figure in everyday.

It appears that many of the motorcycle accidents in the metro involve motorcyclists that pass on the automobile’s right side, which is arguably the drivers’ blind side. 

Aside from being considered as a “no-no” maneuver for passing or overtaking another vehicle, most drivers, especially while negotiating near the curb or sidewalk would presume that no vehicle big enough could squeeze on the right side, except of course for a non-thinking motorcyclist.

My advice for motorcyclists is to claim your rightful place and space on the road, which is, like other vehicles, in the middle of your lane. Doing so would make you more visible to the other users of the road – and a lot safer for you.

Happy Motoring!!!

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