MMDA to ask help from residents to help control traffic

Local communities and private residents may soon have a role in managing traffic in their respective areas, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said the project, dubbed “Metro Traffic Watch,” will enlist barangays, homeowners associations, traffic experts and academicians.

It will also tap non-government and civic organizations in ensuring the smooth flow of traffic in secondary roads and inner streets of Metro Manila, the MMDA added.

The program will train and deputize Community Traffic Aides (CTAs) to help improve traffic management. The CTAs will undergo training at the MMDA’s Traffic Academy in Sta. Mesa, Manila.

“Traffic management should not be the sole job of the government. It is everybody’s responsibility. Mobilizing city residents who are familiar with the terrain of their respective localities in such meaningful endeavor will be of great help to the MMDA,” Tolentino said. 

Under the program, the MMDA will hold consultations with village officials, school and university officials, traffic engineers, residents, village associations, and students.

According to Tolentino, the Metro Traffic Watch is patterned after the MMDA’s Flood Control Bayanihan Zone Alliance (FCBZA), which taps community leaders, barangay officials, volunteers, and residents as first responders in flooding and natural disasters in their community. 

“This is like a neighborhood watch—residents watching their backyards and addressing traffic concerns as it happen,” he said.

He also stressed the importance of involving the public in managing traffic and finding solutions to traffic congestion.

On the other hand, he said the MMDA will also work out a scheme so motorists can use private subdivision roads for a certain period of time, and during emergencies like typhoons. –KG, GMA News