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MANILA — The provincial board of Cebu has approved a resolution declaring a traffic crisis there, one of its members said Tuesday.

Heavy traffic in Cebu leads to around P1.1 billion in losses daily, up from P500 million in 2017, said Board Member Glenn Soco, citing studies by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

The province's narrow roads, lack of a central traffic body and low funding for transportation projects compound the problem, said Soco, who filed the resolution.

"Iyong na-experience ko sa Manila na traffic, ganoon din ang na-experience namin dito kaya I feel there is a need to raise the level of discussion," he said.

(The traffic I experienced in Manila is the same as the traffic here.)

The resolution asks President Rodrigo Duterte "to help us find a solution" and urges lawmakers to grant him emergency powers, which will allow him to create a council that will coordinate traffic plans in the 13 municipalities of Cebu, said Soco.

Under the resolution, citizens are also asked to "rethink the way we live", including working, shopping and choosing schools nearer to their homes, eliminating the need to use cars.

The independent cities of Cebu and Lapu-Lapu are excluded from the resolution, he said.