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MANILA, Philippines — Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Vigor Mendoza has ordered regional directors and other officials to again intensify road safety measures as a surge of homecoming travelers is expected on Easter Sunday.
Easter Sunday is the last day of the Holy Week, which is the most sacred week in the liturgical year of Catholics, and vacationers are anticipated to return home from an extended holiday in different provinces and places abroad on this day.
The LTO assistant secretary said they foresee heavy traffic congestion by Sunday afternoon along major entry points of the National Capital Region and other urban areas.
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“We are expecting the start of the land travel of some of our kababayan (fellow countrymen) on Sunday, March 31, so my instruction is to implement the same road safety measures before the Holy Week exodus,” Mendoza said in a statement released by LTO on Black Saturday,
A week before Holy Week, the LTO launched inspections of the public utility vehicles to ensure their roadworthiness as well as the deployment of traffic managers and traffic rule enforcers along major thoroughfares.
“Siguradong maraming sasakyan ang pabalik sa Metro Manila at iba’t ibang urban places simula Linggo kaya hinihikayat natin ang ating mga kababayan na manatiling maingat sa pagbibiyahe lalo na kung kasama ang ating mga pamilya,” Mendoza said.
(Certainly, there would be many vehicles returning to Metro Manila and different urban places starting Sunday, so we encourage our compatriots to be careful when traveling, especially if we are with our families.)
“Huwag magmamaneho ng nakainom at tiyakin na may sapat na pahinga bago magmaneho. At higit sa lahat, magbaon tayo ng mahabang pasensya para maiwasan natin ang road rage dahil wala naman mabuting idinudulot ang galit sa kalsada,” the LTO head added.
(Do not drink and drive and make sure you are well rested before driving. And above all, let’s be patient so we can avoid road rage because road rage does nothing good.)