The curious case of the ASEAN lanes
OF all the headline-grabbing accoutrements at the recent ASEAN Summit, none can perhaps rival the ASEAN lanes in emotional impact. Tempers exploded as early as the first dry-run. Then came the epic 5-hour crawl from Balintawak to Magallanes. And who has forgotten the daring breach by a former beauty titlist of the locked ASEAN lanes? Not only to escape the horrendous traffic but also, allegedly, to protest being treated as second-class citizens in one’s own country.
Whatever, the angst triggered by the ASEAN lanes eloquently demonstrates once again our dire need for urgent solutions to the ever-worsening traffic situation and the incapacity of our transportation system to make Metro Manila and its environs truly livable. Building resilient infrastructure is among the 17 Sustainable Development Goals agreed upon by the UN member states, and efficient transportation services is among the 169 targets to be achieved by the year 2030.
Where is the Philippines in this area at this time? Well, grand plans for an expanded railway system in South Luzon, another railway system to Clark, a mega-subway – and the list goes on – have been announced at one time or another. But no concrete, physically evident, and palpable new steps or structures have as yet been seen or felt on the ground – unless I have not been home often enough to notice.
As it is, the MRT system is wracked with operational and maintenance issues. The buzz from the ordinaries who trudge and suffer the streets every day – and that is most of us – is: if the MRT cannot even be made to run as it should, stranding hapless commuters every so often, how much more can we expect to see all the announced projects taking off shortly?
It was wonderful to be in Bangkok, actually during the ASEAN. visiting daughter #2 who works there. Public transportation is so efficient I could actually promise to meet up with her somewhere in 15 minutes and I did. What great progress, when not too long ago, Bangkok and Manila were neck-to-neck for the distinction of having the worst traffic jams in Southeast Asia.
Bangkok has only two metrorail lines, like we do, but together, they serve almost 50 stations along the most commuted areas and connect to the subway and a train to the airport. It also has elevated highways crisscrossing the city that decongests traffic at ground level and cuts travel time considerably. I was told that the rail system was designed by Lavalin and subsequently by Siemens – both globally recognized engineering firms; built by a Thai company, the Italo-Thailand Company; and financed by private investors!
It was the same feeling of awe I felt in Taiwan travelling smoothly along its expressways and viaducts. It has at least five levels of roadways, thus freeing a good chunk of its tiny land area for habitation, industry, and agriculture. The efficiency of and innovations in the system have made Taiwan a modern peg for urban planners. Like Bangkok, it relied on reputable and tested foreign expertise, local talents, and sound financing arrangements.
How about us? We can always dream on, of course. 2030 is a good 13 years away.