MMDA: Traffic mess to last 15 years

MANILA, Philippines - The traffic situation in the metropolis is expected to get worse in the next 15 years, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said yesterday.

The government will start implementing the “Roadmap for Transport Infrastructure Development for Metro Manila and Its Surrounding Areas” by 2030, according to the MMDA.

The program aims to ease traffic congestion in mega Manila and improve mobility, connectivity and quality of life of the residents.

“It’s a long way to go,” MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said during the agency’s weekly radio program over dzBB.

With increasing number of vehicles, averaging 11,000 every month, and construction of infrastructure projects in the metropolis, Tolentino said traffic problems would linger.           

The P26.7-billion Skyway Stage 3 project, which involves the construction of a 14.8-kilometer, six-lane elevated expressway that will connect the South Luzon Expressway to the North Luzon Expressway is expected to be operational by 2017.

The project has eight access points, namely Buendia, Quirino, Nagtahan, Aurora Boulevard, E. Rodriguez, Quezon Avenue, Sgt. Rivera and Balintawak.

It is meant to help decongest EDSA and reduce travel time between Buendia in Makati City and Balintawak in Quezon City to 20 minutes or less from the existing two hours.

Tolentino said the road reblocking of the Department of Public Works and Highways along EDSA and railway improvement would contribute to the worsening traffic condition in Metro Manila.

“We just have to wait,” he said.

Tolentino said motorists and commuters will have to suffer from daily traffic jams all over Metro Manila until 2030 when the government starts implementing the transport plan.