Traffic mismanagement
Malfunctioning traffic lights, theft of copper wires, the use of jumpers to steal electricity — all these things have been trotted out as reasons for the traffic jams that have been plaguing motorists at all hours of the day especially on the northbound lane of Roxas Boulevard for several weeks now. How about incompetence and traffic mismanagement? These factors no one will cite.The traffic slowdown started at around the time that the ministerial meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations were held in Manila, when some bright guys must have fiddled with the traffic lights to ensure smooth traffic flow for ASEAN participants emerging from the Cultural Center of the Philippines complex. Now traffic jams have become a daily nightmare from the Vito Cruz intersection all the way to Rizal Park, affecting traffic flow up to the Redemptorist church in Baclaran, Parañaque. The traffic snarls are occurring even as Manila’s Baywalk has been cleared of restaurants and parking along the boulevard has been banned.
You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to deal with the reasons for the gridlock that have been cited by those tasked to manage traffic in one of the busiest thoroughfares in Metro Manila. But officials of the Manila city government, the Metro Manila Development Authority and the Manila police are all scratching their heads and pointing to each other as the one responsible for untangling the mess.
Traffic managers have often blamed the continually increasing vehicular density in Metro Manila for traffic jams. But this is where management skills come into play. There are traffic schemes to ease gridlocks. And if traffic cops do their jobs well and do not accept bribes, bus and jeepney drivers cannot turn three lanes of a four-lane thoroughfare into a virtual terminal. If a computer glitch that wreaks havoc on one traffic light cannot be fixed for months, that’s the human factor at play. But working traffic lights and smooth traffic flow cannot be a priority for government officials who can part traffic with their blinkers, sirens and security escorts. Motorists will just have to get used to traffic gridlocks. There is no cure for human incompetence and neglect.
