A public bus and trucks move along the new coastal road against the backdrop of rolling foothills, the blue sky and the sea. The four-lane road has significantly decongested CM Recto Avenue although an area in Gusa has become a vehicular traffic bottleneck. GSD file photo by Cong B. Corrales
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By BEN BALCE
Staff member

THE newly opened Gusa-Agora section of the four-lane coastal road  may have significantly improved the vehicular traffic flow in many parts of the city but it’s still far from perfect.

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Officials on Tuesday admitted that there were vehicular traffic congestions on both sides of the new road, specifically at the “Galaxy” intersection in Gusa, and at the Agora area in Lapasan.

Lawyer Jose Edgardo Uy, chairman of the Task Force Hapsay Dalan, said the Roads and Traffic Administration has continued with its assessment work and was studying the traffic flow vis-à-vis the opening of the new road for fine-tuning purposes.

Uy said the vehicular flow  was still adjusting.

He said there have been traffic congestions in Gusa and Agora, Lapasan during peak hours.

Uy said there are still construction works at the Agora part of the new road like the unfinished sidewalks, and an ongoing drainage project of the Department of Works and Highways there have been aggravating the situation.

At the Gusa side of the coastal road, the “Galaxy” area has been turned into the point of convergence of vehicles from JR Borja extension, CM Recto Avenue and the new coastal road, said Barangay Gusa chairman Marlo Tabac.

Drivers have no other option but to pass the “Galaxy” intersection, Tabac said.

He said the worsening traffic situation in areas leading to Gusa is due to the volume of vehicles coming from the city proper.

Tabac said a street in Gusa, Pearl St., can be tapped to ease the traffic congestion in the “Galaxy” area. He said it is considered a barangay road.

Tabac said there is no other alternative road and “that’s why we are still seeing traffic jams up to the entrance of the newly opened coastal road.”

Tabac said he has recommended to the RTA to impose a truck ban in Gusa during peak hours.

“Deliveries using huge trucks going to the city proper through the coastal road should be regulated during certain hours,” he said.

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