Reinforce or regulate

Early this week authorities reported that a trailer truck laden with steel bars conked out on the Skyway blocking two lanes and effectively creating a traffic jam from Alabang to Magallanes or thereabouts. It’s not a rare case to see trucks full of steel bars breaking down in the streets of Metro Manila. The usual problems are suspension parts collapsing, a propeller shaft or link snapping, or brakes overheating and fading.

Most people blame this on assumptions that the trucks are too old, poorly maintained or say it’s driver error. But what the owners, clients or the authorities won’t admit, or fail to realize is that in many cases, the sheer weight of the steel bars or cargo are often beyond the carrying and pulling capacity of truck engines and suspensions. It’s like getting a horse used by tourists in Intramuros to pull the largest fully loaded armored car of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The required power to weight ratio simply is not there, and it is often the underpowered that collapses.

This is a very serious concern for toll road operators who require truckers to drive their trucks through industrial scales. Trucks have rated weights but their loads are never weighed, recorded or declared especially when passing through Metro Manila. This is not the first time that the problem has been raised or has occurred, but apparently no one is doing something about it lately except to ban trucks from using bridges and flyovers.  

I recently received an email from a regular reader, Mr. Ernest Villareal, who pointed out what is clearly a cause for concern and probably explains why the DPWH has to constantly repair and re-block EDSA and C5:   

“Hi Cito,

I know of only one measure instituted by Francis Tolentino when he was in MMDA that seems to be working – trucks on C5 must stay in one lane, usually the middle lane.

At least, we now do not have crisscrossing trucks traveling at various speeds – great for slalom drivers but really dangerous. This morning, I was following a train of trucks on C5 and noticed that the roadway commonly passed over by the tires of the heavy trucks are sinking! – the asphalt overlays are giving way to the constant and consistent pass overs of the heavily laden trucks. 

I saw this on the northbound side of C5 near the Osmena memorial in front of Heritage Memorial Park.

Tks

Ernest.”

By coincidence I also noticed many sidewalk curbs at the bottom of Barrio Kapitolyo, Pasig where many trucks still deliver or draw materials and supplies and it is very noticeable that the truck tires have worn out or broken many sections of the concrete curb due to their heavy loads. Many manholes have no cover because the trucks roll over them and crush them. Even on the Mandaluyong side, the roads surrounding Channel 5 that all used to be pretty decent have seriously deteriorated due to all types of delivery and construction equipment passing the area, not to mention excavations that were never properly paved.

I believe it would be a lot more profitable for the MMDA, a cost cutting measure for the DPWH, and would be less stressful for people in Metro Manila if ALL delivery trucks were required to “drive through” weigh bridges or portable scales that can be strategically placed around Metro Manila.

Aside from targeting trucks with too much tonnage, this would be a better option than the questionable and often corrupted Anti Smoke Belching Units that have become extremely controversial. If you’re overweight, you are overweight and just like with humans that’s unsafe! Better to regulate and then reinforce discipline rather than reinforce road and concrete.

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The PNP leadership should get together immediately to address a growing need for “Reputation Management.”

Without a doubt, the Philippine National Police has managed to slowly but surely redeem its image through consistent law enforcement action and letting the public know about their accomplishments and activities. However, three things have happened in recent times that if left unattended could be the match that lights a forest fire.

Video and commentaries have been going around Facebook about the six teenagers that died in a fiery vehicular accident and a claim that “two police officers” who responded to the scene “looked and left to file the report instead of assisting or putting out the fire in whatever way possible.”

Two days ago, a couple of policemen served a warrant of arrest for a high-profile ex-member of the Iglesia Ni Cristo and what should have been a procedural matter if done properly and courteously turned into a case of “alarm and scandal,” possible violations in the guidelines of serving a warrant, as well as a case of conflict of interest that all backfired on the PNP image.

Even before the scandalous and highly unprofessional incident, I already meant to call the attention of “Sir Chief PNP” to the many PNP commemorative plates that have been showing up on dark colored and heavily tinted private vehicles.

I don’t really know who is behind the commercialization of the PNP identity, but the actual problem in allowing these vehicle plates to display the letters PNP is that whenever the drivers of these vehicles act like arrogant thugs on the road or parking lots, the public always assume that the vehicle and driver are connected with the Philippine National Police or are Police officers and that is bad for the image!

With all this in mind, the hard working officers of the PNP seriously need to start paying better attention to the various media platforms that impact on their image, they need to quickly respond or act in a very public manner regarding incidents that can be subject of misunderstanding or misinterpretation as in the serving of a warrant, and they need to see potential pitfalls such as indirect misrepresentation as in the case of commemorative plates.

Equally important would be for the PNP leadership to cascade training programs down to the precinct level that would help the SPO1s and SPO2s to be better police officers and how to best represent the PNP. It is on the ground where people stumble and that’s where the foundation must be made strong.

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