Traffic

"Traffic.. too bad nakaka-badtrip... ". That was a line of an old TV jingle. I guess that San Miguel Beer commercial was effective since I often find myself singing to that tune in the middle of traffic.

Believe it or not, the small city of Dumaguete has its own share of traffic problems too. Yesterday morning, it took me almost 30 minutes (28 minutes to be exact) to travel from home to school, a distance of approximately 4 kilometers. The traffic jam that morning was one of the worst I've experienced in Dumaguete, considering that there was no road accident or other mishaps that could have caused the congestion. Good thing I was driving an automatic that time. Normally, at regular speed and regular traffic, it would take me about 8 minutes to cover that route. Two years ago as an undergrad, that number was around 6 minutes. This proves that (aside from me being a frustrated statistician and numbers-keeper) traffic is becoming worse in the city.

The roads are quite narrow and there aren't a lot of alternative routes to get from one point to another. And then there's the fact that there are a lot of vehicles in the city. Someone once said that Dumagueteños are very much into cars and the number of fancy cars here could rival those of the bigger cities.

Then of course there's the presence of pedicabs (a term for a motorcycle with sidecar) that infest the city. The pedicab drivers speed up, then take a sudden stop or U-turn without any regard for safety or road courtesy. It somehow boils down to the driver's discipline on the road and consideration for others. Drivers do not observe proper traffic rules. There are a lot of traffic signs that never get observed. Just try driving around Dumaguete and I'm pretty sure you'd see what I mean in a few minutes. An uncle observed before that if one knows how to drive in Dumaguete, then driving in other cities would be a piece of cake. That probably best explains how undisciplined Dumaguete drivers are.

When I drive along the National Highway from the public market to PNB, I am amused at how vehicles overtake left and right, the drivers cut in, take a sharp turn or sudden stop. That zone is what I like to call the "free-for-all freeway". Drivers do not follow a certain lane, and one time the road even clogged up to 6 vehicles each in different lanes! Even ants are more organized than this.

Then there's also the physical condition of our roads. It's good that the city has started to cement much of the roads, but there are still quite a number of sections that are really terrible. The road at Lo-oc for example, where you get to experience a "roller-coaster" ride. I believe the reason for these "wavy" roads is because of the soft soil beneath our city. That's what one of my elementary school teachers said. Because of the bad conditions of some roads, and the need to fix them often, a lot of detours and one-ways are implemented. As one classmate said, Dumaguete is a one-way city. There are lots of one way streets to help facilitate traffice and even more because of constructions going on.

These roads should be fixed first. Dumaguete's population will drastically lessen during summer and I hope construction of roads would be hastened during this time in preparation for late May when the population goes back to normal again. The Lo-oc road has been under construction for more than two years already. I noticed that the construction is on and off. It's not finished all at once. Hopefully it would be done soon. The opening of the Lo-oc road would certainly help ease traffic congestion because this is where big trucks and Ceres buses pass, instead of the other narrower roads.

Speaking of trucks, I wish there was still another alternative route that would go from Sibulan to Bacong directly. That way, vehicles that travel from north to south without the intention of being in Dumaguete, could choose this route. Many cargo trucks go from north to south or vice-versa but because there's no other way, they have to pass through Dumaguete. I know this is asking to much, but I believe this option could be studied. I once got from Bacong directly to Valencia (Palinpinon) then through the Dumaguete outskirts (Camanjac) to Pulantubig. Then there's also a route that goes from Camanjac direct to Sibulan via Barangay Magatas. Maybe somewhere along, this alternate route could be realized.

Alternate roads really help. Just recall when the Lo-oc bypass was completed. That, to me, was a very good project. In fact, it helped a lot during the Silliman University Centennial Celebration in August 2001 (by far the busiest month - not only in terms of traffic - in Dumaguete's history). The same should be done with the road that connects Aldecoa Drive (between the SU Medical Center and SU Ballfield) to E.J. Blanco Drive. It already exists but there's just this one property that blocks the path somewhere at the middle. I believe an expropriation case is already in progress but I'm not sure of its current status.

There was much debate regarding the overpass construction at Hibbard Avenue. Personally, I was against it, but still I commend the proponent and the people behind this project for their noble intentions. Whether you like it or not, that's not important anymore since it's already nearing its completion. I believe the project's purpose is to lessen traffic congestion at that area. If that is the case, then make the overpass the only option. I've heard that crossing the street will still be allowed. That just defeats the purpose.

In my honest opinion, it worsens traffic. Let's just see about this a few months from now.

I believe decongestion would also help. I suggest moving some of the establishments somewhere in the outskirts. An example would be having city hall (and all the offices attached) transferred to Bajumpandan. If I'm not mistaken, there was already a proposal similar to this before. Some other government institutions should be moved away from the heart of the city. It would have been better if the Hall of Justice was built somewhere else.

Right now, everything seems to be congested in the downtown area. I was happy when Hypermart opened in Lower Bagacay, at least it somehow diverted some traffic out of the city proper. Hopefully also, Robinson's would open somewhere far from downtown. Let's be realistic. Our "downtown" now would not remain the same after some years. Just look at Cebu. Their "downtown" used to be at the Colon area. But it's now known as the "old city" and newer buildings were established in other areas like the reclamation area (where SM City currently is) and Ayala. That certainly helped "decongest" Cebu.