Citom: Traffic safety first, not traffic fines

Why should the public continue to suffer from traffic congestion caused by illegally parked trucks along MJ Cuenco Avenue in barangay Mabolo, Cebu City?

A Cebuano businessman yesterday asked this question during a traffic briefing given by the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) for Kiwanis Club members held at the Casiño Español.

Businessman Miguel del Gallego’s question came amid Citom operations chief Rafael Yap’s promise to change public perception of their office as “one big collection firm” of traffic penalties.

During the briefing, del Gallego said congestion in the area nearly delayed his arrival at the Kiwanis Club meeting.

He also brought up an incident from two years ago where he was almost hit by a forklift while travelling in the area.

Trucks from Vic Enterprises are parked along M. J. Cuenco Avenue while workers unload cargoes.

The movement of their trucks also stall vehicle traffic in the area.

The obstruction posed by the company’s vehicles has been featured several times since 2007 in Cebu Daily News’ photo corner “Siloy is Watching”.

“What permit do we give them? Why do we allow that to happen?” del Gallego asked.

He asked Yap if he could recommend to Mayor Michael Rama to cease renewal of the business permit issued to the construction materials supplier.

“We have been getting a beating (from the media) on (the operations of) Vic Enterprises,” Yap told Kiwanis members.

He said Citom enforcers assigned in the area even apprehended their truck drivers several times for parking on the road.

But he admitted that the P500 fine is too small for repeat offenses.

Kiwanis Club member Hernan Streegan asked Yap to just increase the fines.

Yap said there is a limit to fines which they can impose on erring drivers.

The maximum penalty allowed by law is a fine of P6,000 or imprisonment of six months.

“Why don’t you recommend to the mayor not to issue his permit to operate? He feels that he is too powerful already,” del Gallego said.

Yap said they will recommend this to the mayor next year to which del Gallego replied that it shouldn’t be made to wait one year.

Yap said what’s needed now is to educate Cebuanos and even school children on the importance of road safety and traffic regulations.

“Before Citom’s success was measured from the amount of money that we collect from violations that is why people refer to us as buayas (crocodiles).  Now we wanted to change that negative impression,” he said.

This time, Citom wants to improve traffic safety and disciplined driving in the next three years.

Records from the Land Transportation Office show most violations are on the non-compliance with the seatbelt and helmet laws and reckless driving.

“This only goes to show that a typical Cebuano driver is one who is not conscious of safety,” said Yap.

In the past three years, Citom collected P40.9 million for the administrative penalties.

This year, Yap said administrative penalties have reached P7.3 milion.

The rate of traffic accidents that inflicted damage to property or actual car crashes in Cebu City ranged from 400 to 1,000 in 2008 to 2012.

“Traffic accidents remain steady but it runs within the hundreds… We intend to use measures in accidents as success indicators,” Yap told the Kiwanis club members.