Once forgotten in Legazpi: Traffic lights

NEWLY installed digital traffic lights on Tahao and Alternate roads in Legazpi City ALYANNA MAE G. MASIP / CONTRIBUTOR

LEGAZPI CITY—For the first time in over a decade, traffic lights are flashing along a busy intersection in this laid-back city overlooking the majestic Mayon Volcano.

Last week, the city government formally switched on the first set of digital traffic lights on Tahao Road (formerly Imelda Roces Avenue) and Alternate Road (F. Imperial Street), near the central business district and regional government offices. The gadget was donated by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

The intersection absorbs a heavy volume of 2,311 vehicles during peak hours in the morning and 2,058 in the afternoon, said Mayor Noel Rosal, citing a study.

Motorists, tricycle drivers and commuters may take time getting used to the new road system.

Ed Doray, 41, a tricycle driver, observed the “delayed response” of motorists to the red, green and yellow signals, causing a buildup of vehicles. “We (tricycle drivers) get to be blamed for the buildup,” he said.

A policeman’s wife, Sally Belen, 30, found it “difficult having new traffic lights as people are not accustomed to it.” But she believes these would help instill discipline among motorists and pedestrians.

Rosal, city councilors and MMDA Chair Francis Tolentino attended the ceremonial switching on April 29. The mayor said it had been “some years” since a “functioning” traffic light existed in the city. Some residents remember that it could have been some 10 years ago, with old busted lights still hanging over some junctions.

Rosal attributed the “countdown” (in switching of signals) for the slight buildup of traffic. The trial phase of the new system would need the “patience and cooperation of the people,” he said.

The MMDA was expected to deliver two more sets of traffic lights, said Roy Dimaculangan, Rosal’s chief of staff.

One could be installed near the public market, where nearly 2,000 vehicles pass by in the morning and afternoon rush hours. Four more busy roads are expected to host the devices when classes open in June.

Rosal said the first set should had been installed last year, but that the city government had yet to carefully study which parts of the city needed it most.

He said the traffic lights system would help speed up vehicular flow in the downtown area, and ultimately, the movement of transactions and commuters.