Marcos thumbs down 2 years of EDSA chaos

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered a suspension of the planned P8.7-billion rehabilitation of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), citing the need to explore faster and less disruptive construction methods.

The overhaul of the 23.8-kilometer thoroughfare, originally scheduled to begin on 13 June and expected to last two years, was halted after Marcos raised alarm over the severe traffic congestion and economic disruptions the project would cause.

“It’s a good plan, but two years would be a huge sacrifice. The traffic will be too heavy, too restrictive,” the President said during the launch of a free fare program at the MRT-3 GMA-Kamuning Station in Quezon City on Sunday. “A two-year ordeal of traffic, lost time, and missed opportunities... is unacceptable,” he added. “We’ve seen some technologies that we didn’t use in the planning of the EDSA rehabilitation. So my instruction to Secretary Vince Dizon and (Public Works) Secretary Manny Bonoan is to pause the rehabilitation for now. Don’t push through with it yet.”

Dizon said the government would use the pause to study modern construction technologies that could shorten the project timeline to just six months.

The EDSA rebuild aims to repair and upgrade Metro Manila’s busiest corridor, which runs through six cities and serves hundreds of thousands of vehicles daily.

As part of the President’s directive, all proposed traffic rerouting schemes — including the odd-even vehicle coding plan — have been shelved.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chair Don Artes said the MMDA will maintain the current number coding scheme while alternative traffic mitigation plans are explored.

“The postponement will give us time to look for other traffic easing measures for the EDSA rebuild that will be less burdensome to motorists and commuters,” Artes said.

Artes had earlier faced criticism from motorcycle rider groups for allegedly targeting the sector, including a proposal to bar them from using EDSA’s overpasses and underpasses.

He also drew fire from many motorists for pushing the reimplementation of the controversial No Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP), which has a pending case before the Supreme Court in response to concerns over due process and data privacy.

The SC recently lifted its temporary restraining order on the scheme as the MMDA argued that the EDSA rehabilitation necessitated NCAP’s return.

But with the suspension of the project for a month, according to the state news agency PNA, calls were made for the SC to reinstate the TRO.

Ride-hailing driver Romeo said that before the SC TRO, both the MMDA and local government units “made money from NCAP.”

“With the President halting the EDSA repairs, it’s only right that NCAP also be put on hold,” he added, explaining that automated enforcement fails to account for real-life scenarios, such as drivers hesitating to give way to ambulances out of fear of receiving violation tickets.

Meanwhile, experts have warned that the economic impact of traffic congestion in Metro Manila is already staggering.

A 2017 study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency estimated daily losses at P3.5 billion. By 2022, this figure had climbed to P4.9 billion per day, with projections of P9 billion daily by 2030 if no effective interventions are implemented.

The annual direct economic cost was pegged at more than P1.277 trillion.

Although less documented, health experts have raised concerns over the public health costs of heavy congestion.

Air pollution from idling vehicles has been linked to respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses, while prolonged exposure to traffic-induced stress is associated with mental health issues, according to the World Health Organization.