Just solve it

There will only be band-aid solutions to the traffic problem in Metro Manila; instead, the government should focus on modernizing the transport system, asserts an urban planner. In other words, traffic congestion is only a symptom of a deficiency in the transport system.

      

Here's other valuable insights on this pressing problem that policy makers ought to seriously consider:

      

1) Opening up more roads will lead to more traffic. It is a trap that has lured many cities. Building expressways and widening roads will not solve the problem because it is an induced demand. Also known as latent demand, induced demand is a paradox which states that after supply increases, more of a good is consumed. This is the same logic postulated by the economic theory of supply and demand.

      

2) A modern and efficient transport system should carry goods and people. In both instances, the country’s transport system is poor and deficient. Right now, we are using trucks instead of trains in carrying containers and transporting people on informal systems, such as jeepneys, tricycles and FXs. We should build more mass-transit systems, such as trains and subways, to reduce reliance on cars and traditional systems. Archaic transport systems, such as the jeepneys and tricycles, have to be phased out from the main roads because they exacerbate pollution and congestion.

      

3) The Department of Science and Technology recently introduced a hybrid electric road train as its contribution to the development of a mass-transport system in the country. Developed by Filipino engineers with local components, the 40-meter train has a maximum speed of 50 kilometer per hour and is powered by hybrid diesel fuel and electric batteries. We should pursue similar initiatives.

      

4) Building a subway must be considered by the government because of the congestion on the ground. Previously subways were not practical because of the cost. But there are new technologies that have lessened the cost of drilling. On-road development is expensive because of the right-of-way acquisitions. We should embark on underground-based railways because aboveground rail-transport systems tend to cause the demise of commercial and business centers within their routes. –End-

      

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