Metro Manila’s streets literally turn into a nightmare grind every December — and Christmas 2024 is no exemption.

With holiday shoppers, balikbayans and daily commuters jostling for space, traffic congestion has reached critical levels of congestion, especially on major thoroughfares like EDSA, C5, Commonwealth Avenue.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) expects vehicle volume to exceed the daily average of 421,000, straining the overburdened road networks of the city.

MMDA chairman Romando Artes admitted to the growing challenge, saying, however, that the agency is doing its best to ease the chaos.

Among the adjustments, malls have delayed opening times to 11 a.m. to spread out traffic surges, while deliveries are restricted to late-night hours.

“We have suspended road excavations and adjusted mall opening hours to 11 a.m. to space out the volume of vehicles,” Artes said in a recent briefing.

This means that the opening hours of 131 shopping malls in Metro Manila, of which 29 are located along EDSA, would be adjusted.

The malls will also impose limited delivery schedules except those for perishable products. Starting now, this would run 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., thus avoiding mall-wide sales.

The MMDA approximates that around 500,000 will be highway users in Metro Manila even until the holidays.

Given all these implementations, flow remains rather sluggish, especially during rush hours.

“We are working with the Department of Transportation to expand the operating hours of public transportation such as MRT and EDSA Bus Carousel to take in more commuters,” Artes said.

Not even alternative routes like Mabuhay Lanes are spared from the choke.

Traffic congestion doesn’t just have financial costs; it also has an emotional cost.

“We lose billions of pesos a year in Metro Manila to traffic, and it is probably going to worsen during the holidays,” MMDA cited a 2022 study.

“This situation is taxing for everybody, especially with the Christmas rush,” Artes said.

More sustainable solutions are in the call of the commuters.

For now, Metro Manila residents are left bracing for the usual December gridlock. The MMDA encourages commuters to plan trips ahead and use public transport whenever possible. But as the holidays draw closer, patience and creativity remain essential for navigating the festive frenzy.

Artes urged the public to plan their trips ahead and use public transport when possible.

As Christmas draws closer, chaos on the roads serves as a sobering reminder of perennial traffic woes in Metro Manila, turning what should be a season of joy into a test of endurance and patience for millions of Filipinos.