Having a lane exclusive for bicycle users in Davao City would still be impossible at the moment, as the city would have to improve first its infrastructures.
City Transport and Traffic Management Office (CTTMO) head Dionisio Abude said that the bike lane ordinance needs to be studied first before implementing it.
“We can always have a bike lane for the city. The only problem we have is that our road spaces are not enough to cater to them,” Abude said.
The traffic head said the width of most streets in the city can only accomodate two to four lanes, particularly in the downtown area.
However, Abude said that it can initially be implemented in the C.P. Garcia Highway and in the currently constructed Davao City Bypass Road in Buhangin and the Coastal Highway projects in portions of Bago Aplaya, Talomo and Matina Aplaya.
He also said that with the road widening projects, being made by the government through the Build, Build, Build Program, having bicycle lanes would be possible.
“But of course, different agencies such as the City Engineer’s Office (CEO) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) should be coordinating in this proposal,” Abude said.
He also said that areas where the bike lanes will be put should be identified.
City Ordinance 0409-10 was lobbied by Councilor Mabel Sunga-Acosta, committee on peace and order and public safety chairperson, after Interface Development Interventions (IDIS), an environmental non-government organization, sent a letter pushing for the implementation of the bike ordinance, authored by the late Councilor Leonardo Avila III on April 2010
Joan Mae Bantayan, an IDIS member and a bicycle enthusiast, admitted that the push for a bike lane ordinance would be impossible, unless many people will be shifting to use bicycles, instead of commuting or driving their own vehicles.
“Constructing new lanes is very expensive. For a start, at least these four wheel vehicles would just share lanes with our bicycle users, for a start,” Bantayan said.
