Dumaguete City Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria has suggested that the best solution to the traffic problem in the city is for people to share rides.
Mayor Sagarbarria explained his side when asked what his administration has done to remedy the situation.
Sagarbarria told the audience during the weekend launch of 2015 Miss Dumaguete candidates at a mall in the city that one of the of the reasons why the country has a tremendous traffic problem is because a lot of vehicles are on the streets.
With fuel practically reduced by half, people are using more vehicles today, he said.
Before, a family of three or four can share a ride but today many families can afford to have more than one ride, especially motorcycles, making the streets so crowded.
Statistics show Dumaguete has about 10,000 to 15,000 motorcycles plying the streets every day, not to include motorcycles going in and out of the city being the capital and the center of trade and commerce in the province.
This is not to mention the presence of four-wheeled vehicles as well, the mayor pointed out.
Sagarbarria has also observed students nowadays practically have motorcycles that have contributed in the traffic situation of the city.
The best solution, he said, is for motorists to adopt a sharing scheme where neighbors who go to work every day may ride in one motorcycle, same with students going to school.
Sagarbarria is optimistic traffic congestion in the central district will be addressed with the construction of the diversion road that traverses several rural barangays of the city.
The diversion road is expected to be finished in 2017, whereby big trucks coming from the south and north of the city will no longer be allowed to pass through the city’s center or poblacion area to ease the congestion.
Sagarbarria said that if motorists would insist to drive their own vehicles at all times, “I don’t think we have a solution for the moment; even if additional enforcers are fielded, this will not solve the problem”, he added.
The best solution would be to go into sharing to reduce traffic congestion, coupled with discipline of the riding public and the public in general.
Adding to the congestion are motorists who don’t have licenses to drive especially underage drivers numbering about 30 to 40 percent, urging the parents to help in the campaign by prohibiting their children to drive if they don’t have drivers licenses. (PNA)
