Metro Briefs

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

Extra space OKd for motorbikes on Edsa, C5 during rush hour

In addition to the existing motorcycle lane, riders will be allowed to use the leftmost lane of Edsa and C5 Road during rush hour, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said on Thursday. MMDA general manager Tim Orbos said the decision was made after a consultation with enforcers and motorcycle groups Bullriders, Arangkada and RG Community. The MMDA also met with Motorcycle Philippines Federation earlier. Orbos said “it is practically unsafe to stay on one lane in these thoroughfares especially during heavy traffic.” Motorcycle riders are now allowed to use two lanes on Edsa and C5 Road from 7 to 10 a.m. and from 4 to 7 p.m. The MMDA revived the enforcement of the motorcycle lane on Edsa, C5 Road, Macapagal Boulevard and Commonwealth Avenue this week. Violators face a fine of P500. —ERIKA SAULER

LTFRB pressed on ‘reckless’ UV Express driver

A commuters’ welfare group on Friday asked the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to suspend the franchise of a UV Express van that was caught on video speeding and hitting a car in Quezon City over the weekend. The Lawyers for Commuters’ Safety and Protection also called on van operator Christine Mae Gonzal to name the “reckless” driver in the video so they can immediately ask the Land Transportation Office to revoke his license. Ariel Inton, the group’s founder and a former LTFRB board member, said Gonzal should name the driver before the Dec. 6 hearing set by the LTFRB since he may still be on the road, posing danger to commuters and other motorists. On Sunday, Noel de la Peña uploaded on Facebook a video of the speeding van (UVR 238) that hit his car’s bumper on Commonwealth Avenue near the corner of Tandang Sora in Barangay Old Balara. Inton said Gonzal may be held liable for the incident since she hired “a reckless driver.” Ryan Salvador, the public assistance and complaints desk head of the LTFRB, said that Gonzal appeared at the agency on Thursday and denied that the van was still hers. She said she had already sold it but didn’t produce any deed of sale. According to Salvador, LTFRB records showed that the van’s franchise was dropped in September 2014, which means that Gonzal had already acquired a new van to be used for public transport and that the van in the video may already be a private vehicle. —JOVIC YEE

Mandaluyong moms help keep milk flowing for PGH

The Mandaluyong City government has renewed its milk-letting program with the Department of Health (DOH), wherein volunteer mothers can donate breast milk to the Philippine General Hospital’s (PGH) Department of Pediatrics.  Mayor Menchie Abalos and PGH Pediatrics Department chair Juliet Aguilar signed the memorandum of agreement at City Hall on Monday. Mothers who join the city’s Breastfeeding Patrol do not only donate breast milk, which is collected by and stored in the milk bank of the Mandaluyong City Medical Center. When major disasters hit the city, the mothers are also dispatched to evacuation shelters so they can provide milk for infants, according to Abalos. As part of the city’s nutrition program, the Breastfeeding Patrol has been successful in helping mothers who have a hard time producing their own milk. “Parents should be practical because milk formulas are very expensive. And for mothers who cannot produce milk, the Breastfeeding Patrol is our answer,” the mayor said in a statement. Aguilar, meanwhile, stressed “that breast milk contains antibodies which are considered the first vaccine for infants. We should remember that even the most complete milk formula cannot compare to breast milk.”