MANILA — The chairperson of the House Committee on Transportation on Wednesday questioned the delays in the implementation of a project that seeks to enhance pedestrian facilities along EDSA.

Antipolo City Second District Rep. Romeo Acop said the EDSA Greenways Project was approved in December 2020. But two and a half years later, he said less than a fourth of the project was completed.

“As of June 2023, 21.46 precent pa lang ang natatapos… Maski may pondo, ganito rin kabagal ang paggawa natin," Acop told the Department of Transportation during a joint meeting of the House committees on transportation and sustainable development goals.

Transportation Undersecretary Anneli Lontoc said issues in land acquisition and changes in procurement policies at the agency delayed the completion of the EDSA Greenways Project. She assured lawmakers that the Department of Transportation (DOTr) was fast-tracking the project.

"We have already acquired the public land, half of the requirement for the project. But the privately owned land, we are still trying to negotiate. There are four that we will be expropriating and the rest, we are completing the documents. 'Yun talaga ang naging cause of delay," Lontoc said.

(That is the main cause of delay.)

"One of the reasons is also, before this administration, our procurement was being done at the PS-DBM. With the new policies on procurement, the DOTr got the old items being procured in PS-DBM, so there’s a delay in the reorganization and the organization of the central bids and awards committee," she added.

Acop said that the issue might be asked "lengthily" when the DOTr's budget is scrutinized by Congress.

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During the joint meeting, the House panels approved the consolidation of the 7 bills that sought to establish a safe pathways network of bicycle lanes, walkways, and slow streets, taking into consideration the Senate version and the position paper that would be submitted by stakeholders.

Cycling advocates and commuter groups stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of people who use bicycles as a mode of transport.

"If there are roads where motor vehicles travel on the same carriageway as cyclists, there needs to be physical separation or barriers to prevent cars and motorcycles from mixing in the same space as bicycles. If physical separation is not possible, then the road should be re-classified as a 'slow street' with priority at all times for pedestrians and cyclists and reduced speed limits for any motor vehicle using the road," Move as One Coalition Co-Convenor Robert Siy told the committees.

"Cyclists need to have a network of safe protected pathways in every city and town connecting key destinations, with infrastructure that has a minimum, measurable scale and meets global safety standards," Siy added.

Meanwhile, the House Committee on Transportation approved on Wednesday a substitute bill seeking to declare May 8 of every year as a special working holiday in the country to honor public transport workers.

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