BIKE FRIENDLY San Juan City leads other cities in building bike lanes to protect bikers. —GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE
MANILA, Philippines – Presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and his running mate Inday Sara Duterte-Carpio on Tuesday vowed to ensure that protected bike lanes are integrated into the government’s future road plans if they win in the upcoming elections.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the need to develop active transport as a practical and healthy alternative to existing modes. By including the provision of bike lanes in the planning and design of our roads, we ensure that our people have options to move around,” the tandem, also known as the UniTeam,” said in a statement.
Marcos-Duterte said they would finish the planned improvement of bike lanes from Class 1 to Class 2 so that cyclists and vehicles are safer.
“We need to ensure that these bike lanes are safe and in compliance with international standards. It will increase the people’s confidence to use bicycles as their preferred mode of transportation,” the UniTeam added.
UniTeam also indicated, citing an SWS poll, that bicycle ownership surged from 8% in November 2020 to 20% or 4.9 million bicycle owners in May 2021 due to the lack of public transportation caused by the implementation of community quarantine in the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The strong demand for the completion of the Metro Manila Bike Lane Network, according to the tandem, demonstrates the Filipino people’s desire for enhanced mobility.
“We are for the completion of the Manila Bike Lane Network, and we are also eyeing to roll-out a similar plan for other urban centers in the country. We need to encourage bicycle use as it’s practical and good exercise activity,” the UniTeam added.
The UniTeam also mentioned they plan to offer zero-interest loans to poor people who cannot buy their own bicycles.
“We are still looking into the possibility of offering zero-interest loans to the poor and the marginalized to allow more people to have a bicycle. This will be a crucial component of our vision of a seamless intermodal transport system in the country,” the UniTeam noted. Jericho Zafra, INQUIRER.net intern
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