One-way traffic scheme to end in 3 major Tacloban roads

TACLOBAN CITY, July 26  -- Both lanes of three major streets in the city’s downtown will be open to two-way traffic starting August 1 after they were turned into one-way streets for eight months.

In a press statement issued Thursday, the city government said the change in traffic rule will cover MH del Pilar, Sto. Niño, and Paterno streets within the city’s central business district.

“The implementation of the new traffic management and re-routing scheme is aimed at easing traffic along roads within the downtown area,” the city government said.

The city, in December last year, turned Juan Luna, Paterno, Sto. Niño, MH del Pilar, and Salazar streets into one-way streets. The traffic rule was supposed to end in January 2018, but was extended until July.

While MH del Pilar, Sto. Niño, and Paterno streets return to two-way traffic, Juan Luna and Salazar will remain one-way streets.

The temporary conversion was part of the ongoing study by the University of the Philippines National Center for Traffic Studies (UPNCTS) to aid the city in coming up with a permanent solution to traffic congestion.

The city has been implementing a one-way traffic scheme in four other major thoroughfares since 2014 when authorities noticed the increasing number of vehicles after Super Typhoon Yolanda struck.

As part of the recommendation of the Traffic Management Study conducted by the UPNCTS, motor cabs for hire (MCH) will be restricted from entering Justice Romualdez, JP Rizal Ave., Avenida Veteranos, and Real.

The truck ban ordinance will strictly be enforced, such that trucks and other large vehicles covered by the ordinance will only be allowed to enter the downtown area through Real St.

“We have just discussed the issue with the committee on Transportation and Terminal Administration. We are eagerly awaiting the final proposed Traffic Management Program from UPNCTS so that we can enact ordinances that will legalize all traffic schemes,” Tacloban Vice Mayor Jerry Yaokasin said in a text message.

Major thoroughfares in the capital of Eastern Visayas have been used by thousands of vehicles daily, including the 2,000 registered MCH.
Tacloban is a first-class, highly urbanized city in the country.

It serves as the regional center of Eastern Visayas. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 242,089, making it the most populous city in the region. (LAAA/PNA)