THE first day of face-to-face classes in public schools opened safely on Monday, August 22, 2022 despite traffic congestion in some convergence points due to the influx of students.
The Davao City Transport and Traffic Management Office (CTTMO) said some of the convergence points include the area from Matina Crossing going to downtown areas of the city, from Milan, Buhangin going to Cabantian, and both north-bound and south-bouth of Quezon Boulevard.
CTTMO radio operator Arnel Dulay assured that their office already has a complete enforcement plan in all areas to manage the traffic.
“Ang among preparation niini, two weeks ago naa na mi plan so kumpleto ta og enforcement sa area. Nabigla gyod mi kay daghana sa mga estudyante matag eskwelahan, ang pinakadaghan sa Davao City National High School (DCNHS) (For our preparation, two weeks ago we already have the plan so we have complete enforcement in all areas. We were schocked with the amount of students in each school, especially at DCNHS) ,” Dulay said during a radio interview.
He added that once all students are on their campuses for class, traffic will decongest in areas of convergence but may become hectic again during peak hours such as lunchtime and class dismissal.
In addition, Dulay said the city government will provide “libreng sakay” for students to provide additional modes of transportation and to cover the shortage of public transportation like public utility jeepneys (PUJ)
“Murag nag shorten sa mga for hire na PUJ. Naay libreng sakay sa mga estudyante pero amo pa i-coordinate sa among head si Sir Abude ang status niini pero ang advice sa mga bus companies, karon mag sugod ang libre sakay (There’s only a few PUJ. So we have the libreng sakay for the students but we have to confirm with our head regarding the status but the buses were already adviced to start today),” he said.
On the other hand, Davao City Police Office director Col. Alberto Lupaz assured that the opening of classes is peaceful and that ongoing monitoring is being done by the DCPO and the Department of Education in Davao Region (DepEd-Davao).
“Nandoon na ang mga pulis natin (at the schools) to provide security, traffic direction and control, at kung ano pa man ang kailangan doon sa school (Our police are deployed in the schools to provide security, traffic direction and control, and other matters the school needs),” Lupaz said. ICM