EDITORIAL - Traffic alert

In 1999 and again in 2011, studies were undertaken to estimate the cost of traffic gridlocks in Metro Manila. The amount was pegged at a staggering P140 billion, computed in terms of both direct and indirect losses. Fuel and electricity expenditures as well as salaries for additional traffic aides were among the direct costs. The indirect losses were based on estimates of labor hours wasted, missed business opportunities, and foreign direct investments that skipped the country for other destinations.

Now the government has warned that more traffic jams are expected as 13 infrastructure projects get underway in Metro Manila this year. Construction is expected to continue until 2016 when President Aquino hands over power. The Metro Manila Development Authority and mayors in the affected areas see a looming traffic nightmare.

The affected areas are among the busiest in the metropolis, including the commercial districts of Makati and Taguig and much of southern Metro Manila. Among the projects are the construction of the NAIA elevated expressway, EDSA-Taft flyover, Skyway 3, the ramps from C-5 to McKinley, the link road between Bonifacio Global City and Ortigas Center, and the repair of the Magallanes interchange.

Traffic is heavy enough in these areas. This year the situation will be worse, but it doesn’t have to be a nightmare as the MMDA and mayors fear. If they can get their act together and coordinate traffic management, it should be possible to minimize the expected disruption in traffic flow by identifying alternate routes and making sure these are free of obstructions, and by resorting to counter-flow at certain hours. Construction can be done in phases so roads closed for the projects can be reopened quickly.

The MMDA and local government units must also be prepared to field more traffic aides at critical spots, not just during rush hour but also until late at night when the trucks are out. Metro Manila is increasingly becoming a city that never sleeps, with shopping malls keeping late hours and many business process outsourcing centers operating in shifts around the clock.

People, aware that the projects are meant to ease traffic, are likely to show patience amid the flurry of construction. But two years is a long time to be constantly stuck in traffic jams, and patience can also wear thin. Especially if people believe that traffic management is badly handled.