Finally, the Ban-Tal flyover is open!

At noontime yesterday, I passed through the controversial Banilad Flyover at the junction of Gov. Mariano Cuenco Ave. and AS Fortuna St. expecting the usual snail’s paced traffic. Surprise, surprise, that problem has all but evaporated. Finally the flyover was “partially” opened in anticipation for the usual traffic problems on All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day this weekend. This project isn’t really finished yet, as the sides haven’t even been asphalted or graded properly and all sorts of spaghetti wires are dangling precariously above.

I’m sure that once this project is officially turned over by the Department of Public Works & Highways (DPWH), this intersection would no longer be the traffic bottleneck that it used to be. I hate to say this, but the reason why this flyover was so controversial was because a group of businessmen tried so desperately to stop this project fearing that the businesses in that junction would suffer. I warned these businessmen, (most of them are my friends) not to go all-out because by experience, I already know that traffic on that intersection would no longer be a problem once this flyover is finished. Now that this flyover is partially opened, what I predicted to my friends is already happening.

There is still a lot of work to be done in that area even if the flyover project would be finished. I’m referring to that humongous “mistake” that the DPWH committed when they put up that bridge along the Mahiga Creek, which Manila-based DPWH mistook as a river. Because they thought it was a river and not a storm drain, they built a bridge higher than the main road. This is one of the principal causes of the traffic congestion along the area. So what the DPWH ought to do is cut off that old bridge and build a new one on the same level of the main road so we can finally focus on other intersections that need a flyover.

There are two other priority areas that we’ve identified a long time ago that needs a flyover badly. One is along the Gen. Maxilom Ave. (Mango Ave.) M.J. Cuenco Ave. intersection that links the national road from north to the south of Cebu City. The other is a flyover that needs to be constructed in lieu of the Immaculada intersection along Gorordo Ave. to somewhere near the Asilo church. I just hope that this time the DPWH and perhaps our good friend, Rep. Raul del Mar would look at these intersections as our priorities, hopefully for the year 2009 just before the Presidential polls.

Meanwhile, the traffic problem along the Gov. Cuenco Ave. or Banilad Road may no longer be a problem as far as the Foodland intersection is concerned, but for as long as we do not address the other traffic problems like in H. Cortes Ave., Canduman Ave. including the widening of the Talamban road all the way to Pit-os, the people living in that area would always have a problem with their traffic. So DPWH watch out!

* * *

I gassed up the other day and found out that Shell has now reduced its fuel pump price at P47.94 for super unleaded gasoline, then yesterday I learned that gas prices went further down by P2 per liter. So by today’s fuel prices we should be back to the levels that we used to pay last January.

Just to show you how the cost of fuel went up and down, last January, super unleaded were pegged at P45.44. Oil prices were quite stable until March came when fuel rose to P47.91. By April, fuel cost rose to P48.60, hitting a high of P49.00 by end of April. When May came, fuel went up to P52.95 and by end of June fuel prices hit a high of 59.40 per liter and eventually hitting a peak at P61.44 by end of July 2008. With oil prices down, we expect prices to go down further.

There is no doubt that the year 2008 will always be on the history books when oil prices breached the unthinkable US$100 per barrel, going even as far as $137 as of Aug.1, 2008. Now that the prices of gasoline (diesel was reduced by P5 per liter) has dropped to the levels of January 2007 it is time to ask the Land Transportation Franchising Board (LTFRB) when they would bring down jeepney fares. It’s ironic that militant jeepney drivers would demand for a price rollback on fuel rates, yet they do not voluntarily reduce the fares for the very commuters that they have sworn to serve.

The LTFRB has become inutile in protecting the interest of the majority of the Filipino people, but they easily cave in to the demands of striking jeepney drivers. Because of their own antiquated Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) LTFRB cannot reduce fares without a public hearing. So it is time for commuters to demand that the LTFRB immediately hold a public hearing to bring down jeepney fares to the levels it was last January.