QUEZON CITY, 24 February 2021 — Yesterday, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chair Benhur Abalos convened a dialogue with representatives from the Department of Transport (DoTr), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and the civil society network Move As One Coalition. Abalos clarified MMDA’s stance that it will not stand in the way of building bike lane network that will traverse EDSA – Metro Manila’s busiest thoroughfare.
The 338.53-kilometer proposed bike lane network is part of the Bayanihan II-supported Active Transport Projects identified by DoTr and DPWH. In particular, the interconnected bike lanes that will traverse through EDSA, as per DPWH’s design, will be a combination of Class 2 (separated bike lanes by bollards) and Class 3 (shared roadway in narrow carriageway width portions of EDSA).
Reacting to this, Aldrin Pelicano, inclusive transport advisor of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) and founder of MNL Moves, said:
“ICSC welcomes the collaboration of the DoTr, DPWH, and MMDA to establish the bike lane network along Metro Manila’s major roads. We particularly commend the pronouncement of Chairperson Abalos and the collaborative leadership of MMDA on this, DoTr’s policy guidance to promote active transport, and DPWH’s design guidance.
“It is a good start to help ensure the safety and build confidence of the majority of Filipino commuters who do not have cars and are dependent on the limited public transport system but contribute to our economic recovery by choosing to cycle as transport, especially amid the pandemic. We look forward to using the EDSA bike lanes, and we hope that more improvement will be instituted as we continue to learn from the model.
“With 87 percent of Filipinos [1] wanting to prioritize public transportation that would also enable pedestrians and cyclists, and 78 percent of workers [2] saying they will keep biking to work despite other accessible means of transportation, we look at the collaborative leadership of DoTr, DPWH, MMDA and other government agencies to also build as one for the majority of the 88 percent [3] of Metro Manila and Greater Metro Manila residents who do not have cars.”
NOTES TO THE EDITOR
[1] Social Weather Stations (SWS) Fourth Quarter 2020 Social Weather Survey, conducted November 2020
[3] Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) technical report, 2015
CONTACT
Denise Fontanilla, media@icsc.ngo, +63 917 851 4890
Photo: Bike commuters use bike lanes in Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City (c) AC Dimatatac/ICSC