(NI NOEL ABUEL)

PINUNA ni Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto ang Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) sa pagbalewala sa kalagayan ng mga pedestrian sa buong bansa sa kabila ng malaking pondong inilaan dito ng Kongreso.

Sinabi ng senador na panahon nang ikonsidera ng DPWH na maglagay ng mga elevated walkways na maaaring gamitin at daanan ng mga pedestrians.

“It is time to elevate wide pedestrian and bike lanes, whether ground-level or elevated, to the league of major construction works,” sabi pa ni Recto.

Sa kasalukuyang sitwasyon, nakasentro lamang ang DPWH sa proyekto nito ang mga lansangan, tulay, flood control at pagtatayo ng silid- aralan at wala ni isa man ang para sa mga elevated walkways na magagamit ng mga pedestrians.

“They do not even merit a footnote. The policy bias is for people who ride in cars but not for people who walk or bike,” aniya pa.

“For example, in the budget request of the DPWH for 2019, projects sought to be funded were detailed in 1,030 pages of fine print, covering at least 20,000 funding items, but not one was for an elevated walkway,” paliwanag pa ni Recto.

Dapat na umanong ikonsidera ng pamahalaan na magtayo ng elevated walkways sa kahabaan ng mga kalsada sa  “pedestrian-dense” sa urban centers tulad ng Metro Manila kung saan marami ang natututong maglakad dahil sa masikip na daloy ng trapiko.

“If there are no sidewalks, or if there are but they’re occupied, or are dangerous to walk on, then we should follow the best practice in many cities of building covered, all-season, and safe elevated walkways,” dagdag pa ng senador.

“If we have skyways for cars, why not raised walkways for people? If we’re building a subway, then we can surely build a pedestrian walkway above ground. If we have the money for multi-lane highways over hundreds of kilometers, how much more for a one-lane walkway that is 3-kilometers long?” tanong nito.