Carmageddon Tuesday: MMDA records 200 road accidents in 1 day

MANILA - The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority recorded more than 200 road accidents in Metro Manila Tuesday that caused monster traffic jams and left thousands of commuters stranded.

"Mahigit 200 plus accidents po pala ang na-record namin sa buong Metro Manila. Kahit ito po ay hindi sa mga lugar na ma-traffic, 'pag nagkaroon po ng aksidente, iyan po ay may chain reaction. Nadadamay lahat ng lansangan," MMDA Assistant General Manager Jojo Garcia told DZMM.

"Kaya po ang ating mga public utility vehicles (PUVs) hindi po nakakaikot nang tamang oras kaya naiipon po ang ating mga pasahero."

(We recorded over 200 accidents all over Metro Manila. Even if these did not occur in areas with heavy traffic, the accidents triggered a chain reaction that clogged other roads. This is why our PUVs took a while to complete their routes and were delayed from picking up passengers.)

Garcia said he himself took 2 hours to get to Quezon City Circle from Roxas Boulevard, a distance of 21 kilometers that typically takes an hour to travel.

Along the way, Garcia said he saw commuters occupying several lanes of the road in the Quiapo area as they scrambled to hail rides.

Garcia admitted that MMDA's thin manpower aggravated the situation. Some 600 traffic enforcers, he said, were taken off the roads to help secure a meeting of Southeast Asian ministers.

The MMDA official urged commuters to stay on sidewalks while waiting for PUVs.

The Inter-agency Council for Traffic meanwhile will look into expediting road projects in order to ease the crippling traffic, Garcia said.

DZMM, 20 September 2017