3 pedestrian walkways to rise in Caloocan

The Caloocan City government announced yesterday the construction of three major pedestrian overpasses on EDSA.

Caloocan City Mayor Enrico Echiverri said the project is being undertaken with the cooperation of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

Echiverri said the construction of the overpasses is being funded by the five percent internal revenue allotment (IRA) for the city from the MMDA amounting to P40 million.

The mayor said he has requested the MMDA to build the overpasses in pre-selected strategic areas along EDSA running from the Quezon City-Caloocan boundary at the Balintawak Cloverleaf Interchange toward the Bonifacio Monument Circle.

Echiverri identified two different sites in Bagong Barrio and another one near Monumento. The three are heavy pedestrian areas, particularly during business hours.

The mayor said the project was prompted by concern over rising incidence of accidents in EDSA because of the lack of safe crossing areas for pedestrians.

The city engineering office said that at least two persons die each week in these accident-prone areas and many have gone unreported.

"We are fast-tracking this to minimize accidents from further happening in these specific areas. Tinatapos na natin ang mga araw na nakikipagpatintero ang ating mga mamamayan sa mga rumaragasang sasakyan habang tumatawid sa EDSA. Marami na ang namatay dito at hindi na natin dapat dadagdagan pa," Echiverri said.

City Engineer Rolando Eduria said the first overpass is located some 100 meters off Tirona street near Balintawak where the Pag-Ibig building stands. At the opposite side is a fire station, which doubles as a police station.

The second crosses from Malvar street, where the SSS building stands, to Urbano street on the other side, leading to major schools like the St. Mary’s, Notre Dame (Caloocan) and City World Colleges.

The third is some 30 meters off Tinio street in front of a lot near a gas station. On the opposite side is an abandoned four-story building.

The area, Eduria told The STAR, is expected to absorb the traffic from Malabon when the Tullahan Bridge is rehabilitated soon.

More commuters from both Caloocan and Malabon will be using this facility when the road from the bridge going to Araneta Village then to Tinio is later used as a major access road, he said.