Legarda proposes ‘road diet’ to address traffic congestion

SENATOR Loren Legarda said Wednesday proper use of roads will help address traffic congestion in cities.

“How do we solve the problem of traffic? The solution does not seem to be the widening of roads or the construction of more flyovers, because over time, new roads would just be filled with new cars,” Legarda said in a privilege speech.

“The solution is simple, simple but brilliant: a road diet. We need to constrict our roads so that we will be forced to use public space more efficiently,” she added.

Legarda said only two percent of the Filipinos own motor vehicles but all of the roads are occupied by these.

She said some 98 million non-users of motor vehicles do not have a place to walk or bike.

“This is injustice of the highest order. In constitutional law, this is a violation of the guarantee to equal protection of the laws,” Legarda said.

Legarda said the roads should be shared equally among pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists.

She said the proposal would promote a paradigm shift from the motor vehicle-based transportation system to a multi-modal system.

“They can choose different modes of transportation depending on their needs — walking or biking for short distances, and safe, reliable, inexpensive and convenient public transportation system for long distance trips,” Legarda said.

Source: Sunstar