City council wants CITOM to explain rerouting, closure

The Cebu City Council yesterday asked the City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) to explain why it has implemented rerouting and closure of some roads without first seeking the approval of the council as required by law.

Specifically, the council has called the attention of the traffic body on the closure of a portion of Escario Extension and for making Don Mariano Cui open only to one-way traffic.

Vice Mayor Michael Rama, the presiding officer of the City Council also asked the council's committee on traffic management to look seriously into the matter.

Rama said that he had already brought up the issue during the past council sessions, but received no feedback.

Last week, the vice mayor also asked the City Council to study possibility of opening the one-way road leading to Chong Hua hospital to two-way traffic as the road is very critical, especially for emergency cases.

He recommended making a portion of Don Mariano Cui St., which used to accommodate traffic headed for B. Rodriguez St., opened to traffic from the opposite direction also.

Rama made his recommendation after he personally saw last week the heavy traffic in the area caused by the closure of the access road at the old Larsian as ordered by Governor Gwendolyn Garcia.

Rama also asked how come the CITOM changed the rules at a portion of Escario Extension, from front of the PhilHealth office going to Ayala, causing heavy traffic in Escario.

During the council session yesterday, the vice mayor went down from his post as presiding officer of the session and made representation to the council to have his resolution carried.

"There is need to make our position very clear," he started his motion, adding that he could not just sit there in his podium looking at the traffic Escario and vicinity of Chong Hua Hospital getting worse. "We should not wait for a major event to occur."

He added that any emergency case should have access to the hospital, but the one-way road has hampered the vehicles from going directly to the emergency room of the hospital.

International traffic laws however allow emergency vehicles or those carrying people in need of immediate medical attention to go against the flow of traffic.

But councilor Raul Alcoseba, chairman of the council's committee on traffic management said that Don Mariano Cui St., coming from B. Rodriguez St., has never been a two-way road.

Alcoseba added that the entry point from B. Rodriguez is also not too big to be made into two-way.

For her part, Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera said that under City Ordinance No. 802, the City Council should be the one to decide which area should be made parking area, two-way, one-way or rerouted.

In case of the making of Escario Extension into one-way, she added that it was contained in the proposed ordinance of Councilor Joey Daluz, but this was disapproved by the council.

"The proposed ordinance was not approved and we have already furnished a copy to CITOM. So they have to remove the "NO ENTRY" sign and blockade in the area because they are defying the City Council," she explained.

Councilor Procopio Fernandez, a member of the CITOM board said that they had a board meeting yesterday morning but the issue in closure of road near Chong Hua was never discussed. - Wenna A. Berondo