Edsa northbound lane barriers irk motorists

MOTORISTS coming from Bonifacio Global City (BGC) and headed for the Estrella flyover in Makati City complained on Tuesday about the placement of plastic barriers on the northbound lane of Edsa, saying there was no prior announcement from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

In a text message to the Inquirer, MMDA Traffic Discipline Office head Cris Saruca said the barriers on Edsa’s northbound lane which stretch from Buendia to Guadalupe were placed “upon the instructions of the Edsa traffic technical working group (TWG).”

However, motorists criticized the move on social media, saying the barriers were preventing them from using the Estrella flyover on their way to Rockwell Center from the BGC.

They particularly complained about the positioning of the barriers in front of Quingua Street, the alternate route for those coming from BGC. From Quingua, motorists can turn right on Edsa and gradually switch to the innermost lane to get on the Estrella flyover on their way to Rockwell.

With the barriers in place up to Guadalupe, motorists have no more access to the flyover, Mandaluyong City resident Brylle Genio said on Twitter as he called on the MMDA to remove the barriers.

Another netizen, Claudine Santos, complained that the barriers were causing heavy traffic and confusion among motorists used to taking the route.

Even TV journalist Ces Drilon questioned why the access from the BGC to Rockwell was blocked “when it is the best way to cross Edsa.”

But Saruca explained that the barriers were placed to “separate the buses in the yellow lanes from the private vehicles,” adding that barriers have also been placed near the approaches to other flyovers and underpasses.

The MMDA earlier explained that having barriers on Edsa would speed up the flow of vehicles since it would prevent swerving which remains one of the main causes of heavy traffic. On Dec. 5, the Edsa TWG placed barriers on the southbound lane from Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong to Gil Puyat Avenue in Makati.

Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, head of the Edsa TWG, said that since the barriers would separate passenger buses from private cars, they would not eat up the lanes for other vehicles and just use the ones designated for them.