By Azer N. Parrocha
MANILA, Oct. 8 (PNA) — The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is eyeing the fielding of more high-capacity mass transport units to reduce traffic in Metro Manila.
DOTC Undersecretary Rene Limcaoco said in a recent press conference that the goal was to lessen the number of private vehicles plying the streets with more high-capacity mass transport units such as trains and buses.
“At least 20 percent of our population (currently) go to work using high-capacity trains and buses. We need to move that number up to 50 percent in order to have a more sustainable solution to traffic,” Limcaoco said.
“Once we achieve that… when buses are in a reliable schedule and are not part of the daily gridlock then (we) will see a migration of people from cars to buses,” he added.
Limcaoco further said that the goal also focused on the eventual phase out of regular buses and replace them with higher capacity buses that were also environmental-friendly.
“With the plans that we have for the bus reform, you will see a transition towards those types of buses,” the DOTC official said.
“There will (also) be new bus routes that are going to be established so that people will have more choices of what buses to take,” he added. (PNA)