First step

When Ferdinand Magellan led an expedition which came to our shores more than five centuries ago, Cebu City was already a thriving community. I can imagine how surprised were Magellan and his Venetian scholar and co-explorer Antonio Pigafetta to find Cebuanos with an appreciable high degree of culture. We were politically organized as evidenced by the fact that we had our own king in Humabon with whom the foreign visitors entered into some kind of international diplomatic relations. Even then, our city since then did not enjoy the benefits of urban planning such that if we view it from the air today, we can see our streets without the sort of engineering concepts other cities of the world are designed with. The roads of Kuala Lumpur, for example, while not as aesthetically built as those in Tokyo, are laid out better than ours. Indeed, our city grew more out of need than advanced planning resulting in crazy road network.

Quite recently, our city mayor, the Hon Michael Lopez Rama, brought to our imagination a Singapore-like metropolis. In his verbose style, he opened our eyes to idea of transforming Cebu City to the level of Singapore. Many of the mayor’s huge following seem to be awed by such an ambitious plan even if the details are yet to unfurl while some of his few critics using otherwise valid arguments have made fun of his pronouncement. Since I am an incorrigible optimist, I would not dignify with any comment those harsh criticisms. I would rather think aloud where the mayor can start.

Fewer observers, not excluding me, consider this Singapore-like dream of Mayor Rama as doable even if difficult. Clearing our rivers of human intruders and alluvial deposits and restoring these waterways to their original sparkling cleanness, rate high in his talks addressing environmental concerns. Relocating squatters to condominium type dwellings takes next prominence among social issues. To me though, to re-engineer our city streets should be the first step. Three theories immediately come to mind. Widen narrow streets. Straighten crooked roads. Open new highways.

As I admit to possess no engineering background, I respectfully submit that in the north district of our city, Cabantan Street in Barangays Mabolo and Luz, Holy Name in Mabolo, Urgello Private Road in Sambag Uno, Echaves Street in Barangay Zapatera, need urgent widening and straightening. This Cabantan Street has to be widened to help absorb the ever increasing volume of traffic in the SM, Ayala and IT Park complexes. At both present ends of this road, there should be opened extensions. One will link towards the reclamation area and the other to push towards Gorordo Avenue.

The length of the road between Hernan Cortes in Mandaue City and San Jose de la Montana in Cebu City needs a cross street to absorb heavy traffic. The street known as Holy Name answers that need but only when it is widened. As it is, this road can hardly take two vehicles coming from opposite directions. Like the Cabantan Street, there is a need to open a road extending the Holy Name from M J Cuenco Avenue to the reclamation area.

The street which i know to be Urgello private road and which somehow runs parallel to Jones Avenue (now Osmeña Boulevard) has remained narrow for decades. Yet, it links the two densely populated barangays Sambag Uno and Sambag Dos. It must be widened and more importantly, extended towards B Rodriguez Avenue in order to help diffuse the Capitol and downtown bound traffic of Jones Avenue.