Parents of Ateneo, Maryknoll students to help manage Katipunan traffic

MANILA — Expect the parents of students of Ateneo de Manila University and Miriam College to literally take to the streets in keeping a watchful eye over the traffic situation on Katipunan Road.

Through the Metro Watch Traffic Program of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, local stakeholders will be designated as traffic enforcers during the horrendous rush hour on the national road.

“Maybe some of the motorists are their co-parents and attend the same meetings that they do. Since they know them, it would be easier to urge the motorists to follow traffic rules,” MMDA chair Francis Tolentino said.

The parents, as local stakeholders, will be designated as community traffic aides to man the traffic along Katipunan Road during peak hours.

The community traffic aides will augment the MMDA personnel along the busy national road.

The project will begin at the opening of classes in June.

This was announced at a consultation on Monday, with representatives from the Ateneo, Miriam College, La Vista Subdivision and nearby communities.

During the meeting, the stakeholders agreed to a MMDA proposal to close a U-turn slot in front of La Vista Subdivision’s Mangyan Road and to open one in front of Shoppesville Supermarket.

Tolentino said this would mean that there would be four U-turn slots on Katipunan Road.

The proposal was from four options, which were a result of traffic simulations conducted by the MMDA.

Tolentino said they expected the new traffic scheme to improve traffic flow from 27 kph to 32 kph.

The Katipunan Road has a vehicle capacity of 1,200 vehicles per lane per hour.

Elmo San Diego, chief of the Department of Public Order and Safety, stressed that tricycles would not be allowed to run along the stretch of Katipunan Road.

Tolentino added that a CCTV camera would be installed on Katipunan Road footbridges by next month.