QC road renovation to ease traffic flow
By Marlon Ramos
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:27:00 01/07/2009
Filed Under: Road Transport, Local authorities
MANILA, Philippines – Bottlenecks on Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City would soon be a thing of the past once the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority completes the renovation of the highway next year, according to MMDA Chair Bayani Fernando.
Fernando said Tuesday the major road repairs on the eight-kilometer stretch of the thoroughfare from Quezon Memorial Circle to Doña Carmen Drive would increase the average travel speed by 60 percent.
From the current 50 kilometers per hour (kph), vehicles passing by the avenue would be able to accelerate to up to 80 kph, he said.
According to Fernando, the rehabilitation of the road was almost 50 percent complete.
“Motorists and commuters using Commonwealth Avenue will experience faster travel on a well-paved road with more than enough footbridges for pedestrians, loading stations for commuters and even a bicycle lane,” he said in a statement e-mailed to the Inquirer.
Bicycle lanes and pedestrian walkways with ornamental plants will be among the centerpiece of the renovated road, Fernando added.
Ramon Ona, director of the MMDA Traffic Engineering Center, said that aside from bike lanes and sidewalks, additional U-turn slots and footbridges would be built in the area while the drainage system would be improved.
He said Commonwealth Avenue would become the country’s widest road as it would have between 10 and 18 lanes with the completion of the road widening project.
Ona said the improved flow of vehicles in the area would save motorists P53 billion in fuel costs and hospital fees as accidents caused by the heavy traffic during rush hours would be minimized.
“An average of 220,000 vehicles pass through Commonwealth Avenue daily, 11,000 of which (are caught in traffic) during peak hours,” he said.
Started three years ago, Ona said the rehabilitation of Commonwealth Avenue called for the demolition of shanties, commercial establishments and other illegal structures within the 95-meter wide road right-of-way.
He said footbridges and loading bays for public utility vehicles were constructed only 500 meters apart for the convenience of commuters.
“So far, the MMDA has built five of the originally planned 17 pedestrian footbridges which will be complemented by unconventional U-turn slots to ease vehicle conflict at junctions,” Ona said.
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