Striking drivers claim "50% traffic paralysis"

Nagkahiusang Drayber sa Sugbo and Alliance of Transport Organizations Member Intra-Cebu City claimed to have successfully crippled more than half of the overall transport system in the city yesterday as they held their strike in time for President Gloria Arroyo's State of the Nation Address. This even as there was some heavy traffic in some areas of the city.

NADSU lifted its strike at about 5 p.m. after the rally of the Gloria Step down Movement at the Cebu provincial capitol while ATOMIC members plied their routes at 2 p.m. while its allied organizations led by Laban ng Masa prepare for a caravan to the Malacañang in the south.

Cebu City Police Office acting director Melvin Gayotin said the protest rallies and strikes were carried peacefully.

NADSU chairman Antonio Pogado claimed the most affected area is Mandaue City because "more than 90 percent" of the PUJs there joined the strike. Many passengers, especially students and workers were stranded and were complaining due to lack of PUJs.

They claimed that transport system in 4th district was also "100 percent affected" as drivers there went on strike since Sunday. About "70 percent of jeepneys" in Consolacion also joined the strike while transport system in the southern Cebu was "60 percent affected".

ATOMIC also claimed Apas, Lahug and Campo routes were "80 percent affected" while Plaza housing was "50 percent affected".

ATOMIC press relations officer Pete Negara said that "80 percent" of all jeepneys plying Colon route joined the strike.

But in some areas, traffic was normal, sometimes even heavy.

In Labangon, for instance, most of the drivers did not join the strike and there were traffic jams along N. Bacalso Avenue.

Packs of stranded passengers were mainly caused by floods in some parts of the city, especially in Colon and Sanciangko streets, caused by heavy rains during the early afternoon.

In Talisay City, except for protestors posting near Asian College of Technology in Bulacao, there was no indication of a transport strike. As of 11 a.m. yesterday there were still Talisay-bound PUJs plying their routes.

Cebu City councilor Gerardo Carillo said the traffic only affected 10 percent of the city's intra-city transport operations.

He said yesterday's strike was the least effective he had seen in his five years as the action officer of the Cebu City Disaster Coordinating Council. In fact, only five out of the 28 Kaohsiung buses and 10 out of the 50 city-leased multicabs were deployed to do some monitoring and accommodate stranded passengers.

Based on their monitoring, Carillo said most of the strikers were drivers plying Lahug-bound routes.

CCDCC personnel and traffic enforcers assigned to various choke points also got the names of the striking drivers, these will be endorsed to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board for appropriate action, including the cancellation of the franchises of their respective vehicles, Carillo said.

On the other hand, non-striking drivers yesterday were given packed meals at noon as well as courtesy cards in the afternoon that will entitle them condonation of a traffic violation.

The only two untoward incidents reported, one was at the intersection near the SSS building around 10 a.m. yesterday when strikers refused to let PUJs pass, while a number of rallyists battered and dented a police car near Fuente Osmeña about 4 p.m. yesterday.

No injuries were reported in both incidents.

Some private schools and most of public schools also cut classes short in anticipation of the strike, Carillo said.

At the Palace of Justice, Regional Trial Court executive judge Simeon Dumdum Jr. issued a memorandum shortening the officer hours of all court employees to 3 p.m. in consideration to their staff who might have trouble finding a ride home.

The courts had to suspend or postpone hearings of cases or other court-related activities scheduled during the afternoon.