Traffic woes take toll on economic growth
Economic losses due to the traffic problem in Cebu are increasing, said Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Antonio Chiu, as implementation of road infrastructure projects is also worsening the situation.
Chiu believes businesses in Cebu have been incurring revenue losses due to traffic although he could not quantify his assessment.
He said because of traffic, it would take a longer time for companies to transport goods and their people, thus decreasing their efficiency.
Workers are likewise affected by traffic woes, wasting their time and decreasing productivity.
“There are really losses, big losses and time wasted," the CCCI official said.
Chiu said the chamber will continue to lobby for more infrastructure projects to solve the traffic problem in Cebu.
The official also urged local governments and government agencies implementing road projects to do careful planning to mitigate the impact of these projects on traffic.
Chiu said this amid public complaints on the worsening traffic situation in N. Bacalso Avenue in Mambaling, Cebu City because of underpass construction in the area.
"We can't stop these projects. But the government must improve on the planning to mitigate their (road projects) impact on traffic," he said.
He said that CCCI had been talking to the business community to see how the sector can help address the traffic problem.
He cited that one key solution to the problem is really to develop a mass transport system in Cebu to decongest its roads.
He said this should have been implemented before as Cebu continues to grow economically.
Philtram Transportation Consortium Inc. is proposing to develop a monorail system in Cebu which it said is the solution to its traffic woes.
The company is expected to submit its unsolicited proposal and feasibility study on the project to the Department of Transportation.
Initially, the 16.5-kilometer monorail is being eyed to start at Citta Di Mare at the South Road Properties, then to SM Seaside City, to Mambaling Access Road, to Natalio Bacalso Avenue, to Katipunan area, to P. del Rosario Street, to Zapatera, to Robinsons Galleria, to SM City Cebu, to Mandaue City, to Parkmall, to San Miguel area, to Maguikay, to Pacific Mall.
A monorail is a railway system in which the track consists of a single rail, typically elevated and with the trains suspended from it. The term is also used to describe the beam of the system, or the vehicles traveling on such a beam or track. Many monorails run on elevated tracks through crowded areas that would otherwise require the construction of expensive underground lines or have the disadvantages of surface lines.