PAGING DPWH SECRETARY BONOAN
In the early years, the now North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) starting point was in Guiginto, Bulacan. Let’s retrace the birth of this this expressway. If my recollection is correct, it was 1962 and Diosdado Macapagal was president. It was the Bureau of Public Highways which started the expressway. It changed hands over the years. When Ferdinand Marcos became president, the expressway was privatized and Rodolfo Cuenca’s Construction Development Corporation Philippine (CDCP) operated it. It changed hands again when Corazon Aquino was swept to power. The operation was handled by the Lopezes and in turn was flipped to Manny Pangilinan and is now operated by by Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation ( MPTC). Many made bundles along the way. Lalo na si MVP busog na busog na.
Enough of history. Let’s talk about roads. Almost half of our lives we pass through many of them, either by walking or riding a vehicle. There is a tragic stressnousness every time a motorist make use of them. We in the past many many years wanted government to end corruption in the construction of a national highway or even the so-called barangay road or a farm to market roads. But it seems, it will not end until kingdom come as long as we have that system popularly known in the circles as SOP. (Ask your favorite Senator, Congressman or any of the public officials they know what that acronym means).
Traveling McArthur Highway from its starting point in Pangasinan up to Balintawak in Caloocan City is no smooth ride. There are several portions that have seen better days. All patchworks. Bumpy ride. (Paging DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonan. Sir you please drive between the Angeles-San Fernando stretch of the MacArthur Highway so you would understand the points of this article). Nerve wracking with all those tricycles and kolong kolong racing with brand new SUVs. Daredevil motorcycle riders, particularly food delivery drivers, who think they are Evil Knievel and have no fear of death. That particular stretch of the road needs to be replaced, or maybe asphalt layover throughout.
Another nerve wracking situations being experienced by motorists are these RFID on toll gates. The technology is there but it is far from perfect. Those bright boys kuno from the Department of Transportation are no bright boys at all. RFID means Radio Frequency Identification. A radio frequency can read more than a kilometer distance. I experienced this in my travels in many countries. And I observed that aside from these RFID lanes there is one or two cash lanes which also served for loading if you have less balance. DOTR enforced it prematurely even it is far from perfect and it will tells us it was not carefully studied.