Push Admin

MMDA: EDSA traffic congestion on pre-pandemic levels, but not time yet for number coding

Article (news)

ABS-CBN News

MANILA—The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said it was still studying when to again put into effect the number coding scheme on EDSA, as vehicle volume neared pre-pandemic levels.Noemi Recio, director of the MMDA traffic engineering sector, said the number of vehicles on EDSA has increased since the region was placed under Alert Level 3, with about 390,000 vehicles per day on the metro&#x27;s major thoroughfare.This is just around 15,000 less than the daily average of 405,000 vehicles before the pandemic.&quot;Simula nu’ng nagbaba tayo ng alert level, Alert Level 3 na tayo, is ayan nga, based doon sa volume ng MMDA, ay talagang nagbalikan na &#x27;yung ating mga sasakyan, especially along EDSA,&quot; Recio told Teleradyo Tuesday.(Since we&#x27;ve been on Alert Level 3, a lot of vehicles has been hitting the road, especially along EDSA.)&quot;Before kasi mag-pandemic, ang volume natin sa EDSA is 405,000 a day. Pero ngayon, ’yung huling bilang namin is 397,000, 398,000. So naglalaro na tayo, malapit na tayong dumating sa 400,000. At inaasahan pa natin na, siyempre palapit ang Pasko, pataas pa ito. Malapit na natin ma-reach ’yung ating pre-pandemic volume na 405,000.&quot;(Before the pandemic, the daily volume of vehicles on EDSA was 405,000. Now we are at least at 397,000, so we are nearing 400,000. And we are expecting this to increase as we enter Christmas season. We are nearing the pre-pandemic volume of 405,000.)According to Recio, as of October 27, the MMDA recorded 387,626 vehicles on EDSA. During the peak of the pandemic, only about 100,000 vehicles were seen on EDSA, with the number increasing to around 320,000 around September.&quot;Hindi na tayo bumaba, nadagdagan na nang nadagdagan,&quot; Recio said. (The numbers aren’t dropping. They keep going up and up.)Recio said the MMDA has not decided on resuming the number coding system, since public utility vehicles are still operating on limited capacity.&quot;Ano ba’ng option ang maibibigay natin doon sa mga hindi na pwedeng magdala ng sasakyan kapag number coding sila? Mayroon bang enough o sufficient na sasakyan itong ating mga kababayan? So &#x27;yun ang tinitingnan, binabalanse ng ating MMDA,&quot; she said.(What options are we giving to those who can’t use their vehicle when the number coding is in place? Are there enough public transportation options? That’s what we are looking into, what the MMDA is trying to balance.)She also said private vehicles provided more protection from COVID-19 since it functions like a bubble.&quot;So kunwari number coding ka, maoobliga ka sumakay ng public transport so hindi ka sigurado. Or pwede kang makisakay sa’yo kaibigan mo, kapitbahay mo, hindi ka makatanggi. So papaano kung isa sa inyo nag-positive? So baka maging cause para magkaroon ng hawaan,&quot; Recio said.(So if the number coding stops you using your own vehicle, you’d be forced to take public transportation but you’re not sure whether you’re safe. Or what if somebody wants to hitch a ride and you can’t refuse, but what if one of them is positive for COVID? The disease can spread that way.)Recio said the MMDA could implement the number coding once there are enough public utility vehicles for everyone.&quot;Kapag sa tingin natin is kaya nang isakay &#x27;yung ating mga may dala ng kotse na number-coded, kunwari, kung kaya nang isakay ng mga public transport natin, and nakita natin na hindi na talaga gumagalaw ulit, katulad ng dati na grabe ang traffic sa EDSA, that&#x27;s the time siguro na magdecide na maibalik na ang number coding. But, as of now, wala pa tayong number coding,&quot; she said.(When we believe the public transportation system can accommodate those who are affected by number coding, and if the traffic situation worsens then that&#x27;s the time when we&#x27;ll decide if we will reimplement number coding but for now it is still suspended.)<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1817610" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

On October 27, the MMDA recorded 387,626 vehicles on EDSA, which is closing in on the 405,000 daily average before the COVID outbreak.