THE DEPARTMENT of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) considers the plan to construct a flyover along Lacson and Espana Avenues as the best way to ease traffic woes in the area. We beg to disagree.
The four-lane flyover, proposed early in 2012, was initially designed to start at Alcantara Street and end near Dapitan Street. The construction was moved to 2017 due to revisions in the design. DPWH has now extended the endpoint three blocks farther to Aragon Street. Good enough that the proposed rail construction of the Metro Rail Transit Line 9 project did not push through; it would surely worsen the situation on Lacson as it would transform it into a busier, more crowded, and yes more traffic jam-prone area.
What DPWH has failed to realize is that there might be a long list of problems waiting for nearby establishments and communities once the building of the flyover pushed through. This means that the University and the UST Hospital are in danger of being negatively affected by the structure. The flyover must be an insult to UST, which has been declared by the National Museum and National Historical Commission as National Cultural Treasure and National Historical Treasure, respectively.
We have found out that Alex Bote, DPWH project manager of the Lacson flyover since 2014, has not yet even consulted the administration of UST regarding the revisions. It is unprofessional in the part of the DPWH not to update the UST administration with its odious plans. Talk about respect to the general hospital and the oldest university in Asia! The UST administration must have taken part in the process because it is not just the motorists whom the DPWH should be concerned with, but also the thousands of Thomasians and the poor patients of the hospital.
We are one with UST Rector Fr. Herminio Dagohoy, O.P. who said in a letter to the Varsitarian dated Jan. 22, 2016 that UST has “expressed its strong reservations on the construction of the proposed Lacson flyover” in a meeting held June 2014 between the Council of Regents and the DPWH. He cited UST concerns such as “issues of safety and security; the need for a noise barrier because of its (flyver construction) proximity to the hospital, Roque Ruaño and Albertus Magnus buildings; peace and order; access to and from the campus and the overall architectural design of the project.”
The P2.425-billion budgeted flyover, which was reduced to second-level height from the third level, will dehumanize the city. Architects said flyovers destroy the value of landscapes. The requirement for a five-meter reduction of the Lacson sidewalks, resulting in the removal of the UST Hospital’s Clinical Division ramp, shows how the design devoted so much care to cars and private motorists rather than pedestrians, students and poor patients. The plan to reduce the sidewalks threatens the safety of the pedestrians going in and out of the University and commercial buildings as well.
DPWH can’t just remove the space that belongs to UST. The Varsitarian previously reported that Faculty of Civil Law Dean Nilo Divina said the DPWH should first observe the legal process before removing the hospital ramp. It cannot be removed without “judicial intervention,” he said.
If the construction pushes through — which will last for 15 months — just imagine how the community would be troubled by the noise pollution and traffic stress that the construction would bring. How could the students whose classes are held at the Roque Ruaño and Albertus Magnus Buildings study their lessons without getting distracted and annoyed by the racket as a result of the building of the flyover? Does the DPWH they even consider the UST Hospital patients?
Stepping outside the premises of the University will place Thomasians in danger. Just imagine the added danger should there be sketchy people living under the structure.
Maybe it all boils down to the fact that this flyover is nothing but a selfish project by the government. If government really cares about the people, it would have carefully thought about other options on improving the traffic situation in the area. Stricter implementation of traffic rules is what the local government should learn more. The multimillion worth flyover is not the only solution to solve the longstanding traffic along Lacson Avenue. Drivers of the public utility vehicles such as jeepneys and tricycles must be disciplined so that they will no longer park their vehicles along the lanes of Lacson. Traffic enforcers should never hesitate giving tickets to violators so the drivers would not block the supposed smooth flow of traffic. As The Varsitarian previously reported, the planned flyover in Lacson is not the best solution to alleviate traffic woes because the streets connected to Lacson are narrow and congested.
The Lacson flyover should not push through given all the dangers and inconveniences it would bring. Building the structure at the expense of the communities, commercial establishments, the University and UST Hospital–is being inconsiderate and selfish on the part of the government.
