Mandaue traffic light system set for rehab

CEBU, Philippines —  The Mandaue City government has earmarked more than ?60 million for the phased rehabilitation of aging traffic light systems across the city as part of efforts to improve traffic management and road safety.

Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (TEAM) head Hyll Retuya said many of the city’s existing traffic lights have been operating since 2010 to 2013 and are already showing signs of deterioration.

“Ang kining atong traffic lights ang uban ana dilapidated, due to wear and tear sa kadugay’ng panahon,” Retuya said.

He said the rehabilitation will involve replacing outdated traffic light housings while retaining existing wiring where it remains serviceable. The city is also looking at upgrading the systems to support artificial intelligence (AI)-assisted traffic management in the future.

However, Retuya clarified that the rehabilitation cannot be implemented all at once due to funding requirements and the city’s other infrastructure priorities.

“Anyway, wala man na pasagdi nato ug sa administration ni Mayor Jonkie (Thadeo Jovito Ouano), ato man ng gihatagan og pagtagad, dili lang gyud nato mabulto kay we will have a budget of P60 million plus for the rehabilitation alone,” he said.

According to Retuya, TEAM has already prepared a rehabilitation plan that prioritizes intersections based on the severity of the traffic lights’ condition.

“Dako baya kaayo ang Mandaue, dili ra ang traffic lights atong gi-focus,” he said, noting that the city also has other projects and programs competing for funding.

Among the intersections identified for rehabilitation are M.L. Quezon Street in Barangay Maguikay, Highway Seno Street in Barangay Bakilid, the Banilad intersection in Barangay Banilad, and Ouano Avenue in Barangay Subangdaku.

“Gipa-identify na nato sa atong supplier kung asa gyud ang pinaka-grabe ug pinakauna gyud nato nga i-rehab,” Retuya said.

He added that the rehabilitation will be carried out in phases, with the city determining annually which traffic light systems will be upgraded first.

“Daghan pero dili nato madungan, but we need to strategize kung unsay unahon,” he said.

Retuya said the city government remains committed to addressing the deteriorating traffic light systems by allocating funds for their rehabilitation.

He also noted that modern AI-enabled traffic light technology is already being used at the M.C. Briones Street and U.N. Avenue intersection in Barangay Ibabao-Estancia.

The system can detect traffic volume and automatically adjust signal timing to improve traffic flow. (CEBU NEWS)