Urban Transportation in Metropolitan Manila*

PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL I~ <1&~'V ..." z (/) ~ SCHOOL OF URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNING • VOL. XVII, NO.1, OCTOBER 1985 • THE METRORAIL SYSTEM PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL VOL. XVII, No.1, Oct. 1985 Board of Editors Dolores A. Endriga Tito C. Firmalino Jaime U. Nierras Managing Editor Production Manager Carmelita R. E. U. Liwag Delia R. Alcalde Circulation & Business Manager Emily M. Mateo The Philippine Planning Journal is published in October and April by the School of Urban and Regional Planning, University of the Philippines. Views and opinions expressed in signed articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the School of Urban and Regional Planning. All communications should be addressed to the Business Manager, Philippine Planning Journal, School of Urban & Regional Planning, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines 1101. Annual Subscription Rate: Domestic, fl40.00; Foreiqn, $12.00. Single copies: Domestic, "20.00; Foreign, $6.00. Back issues: Domestic, fl10.00/issue; Foreign, $6.00Iissue. TABLE OF CONTENTS Urban Tansportation in Metropolitan Manila Selected Officials of the Ministry of Trans portation and Communications 20 Pedestrianization of a City Core and the Light Rail Transit Victoria Aureus-Eugenio 33 The LRT as a Component of Metro Manila's Trans port Systems - Ministry of Transport and Communications 46 Urban Land Management Study: Urban Redevelop ment in Connection with Metrorail Office of the Commissioner for Planning, Metro Manila Commission 57 Philippine Planning Journal Index 61 About the Contributors SAN j I I I ( 1 / SAN MATEO MANILA BAY N CD Figure 1.1. MAP OF METRO MANILA URBAN TRANSPORTATION IN METROPOLITAN MANILA* by Selected Officials of the Ministry of Transportation & Communications BACKGROUND Traditionally the center of the country's activities, Manila and its immediate periphery The urban mass transportation in the Philip exerts a profound influence and a commanding pine setting is best appreciated and analyzed in role over its outlying areas and for that matter, the context of Metro Manila. The choice is sig the Philippines as a whole. Metro Manila is nificant as Metro Manila, the primary city of home to the highly centralized national govern the Philippines, is also the seat of the govern ment. It has most of the institutions of higher ment and the center of culture, education, learning and research, the major medical cen finance, trade and commerce. It is the port city ters and, the major share of national cultural and the site of the country's principal interna activities. tional airport. Major transport and traffic pro It is also emerging as an international con blems in Urban Philippines are found in Metro ference center. As the seat of the national gov Manila wherein government efforts in terms of ernment, Metro Manila attracts the head offi resources have been concentrated. ces of major local and international companies. It is the financial capital of the Philippines and Metropolitan Manila has aspirations of becoming a major financial center for South-East Asia. Metro Manila is the Metro Manila, also called the National Capi dominant center for consumption, processinq tal Region, is an area, comprised of four (4) and distribution of imports and having the main cities, namely: Manila, Quezon, Pasay and international port of the Philippines, it handles Caloocan, and thirteen (13) municipalities, the bulk of incoming trade. It is also the center namely; Mandaluyong, Makati, Malabon, San of air traffic, Manila International Airport, to Juan, Pasig, Pateros, Taguig, Muntinlupa, the south of the city, plays a pivotal role as a Marikina, Navotas, Las Pinas and Parafiaque, connecting point for international flights to all all in the province of Rizal and Valenzuela in other parts of the country. the province of Bulacan. Metro Manila has a population of about seven million people Historical Development of Transportation which is rapidly expanding at a growth rate of 3.6 percent per annum. Its area extends 25 The first form of public transport system in kilometers from north to south and 12 kilo Manila, and the Philippines, for that matter, is meters west to east, covering an area of 636 the horsedrawn streetcars introduced by the square kilometers. Figure 1.1 shows Metro "Compania de los Tranvias de Filipinas" in Manila's composition and Figure 1.2 indicates 1881 until 1902. Prior to this, journeys were the population densities in the different cities/ made mostly by foot or by horsedrawn calesa municipalities. and carromatas. The horsedrawn streetcar, which was confined to the old city of Manila, brought a big change in the Filipino lifestyle "Paper prepared for the Workshop and Seminar on and commerce. Urban Mass Transport, organized by the Ministry of Before the turn of the century, the company Transportation and Communications, Manila, 1985. added a subsidiary 4.3-mile tramway with 1 PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL Figure 1.2 POPULATION DENSITIES IN METRO MANILA ,- 2 1 ( I' 1,- I 1 Id ,( Ir. -+--+--+--~ i MI II'! A NIL I 6 A Y 12 I' ,r: 1 2 PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL steam-powered locomotives which was aban the Luzon provinces by highways and express doned at the start of the American regime in ways and to the rest of the Philippines, by air 1900. In 1903, an American firm establ ished and water transport. It has the biggest domestic the Manila Electric. and Railway Company airport in the country and local port, as well. (MERALCO), which was franchised for fifty To ease traffic congestion and provide acces (50) years, to operate an electric railways sibility and linkage to outlying areas and the streetcar service in Manila. rest of the Luzon mainland, several major ex In 1927, twenty (20) motor buses were ini pressways and by-passes were constructed as tially put on the road as supplementary service shown in Figure 2.1. to the MERALCO tramcars. From this small To the south, the South Superhighway pro beginning, bus routes radiated from the Manila vides access to residential and industrial areas CBD to provide crosstown public transporta adjoining Metro Manila while the South Ex tion linking the different districts and fringe pressway Extension, which was completed in towns adjoining Manila. At the end of 1930, 1978, provides linkage to the southeastern pro MERALCO has eighty five (85) buses in Manila vinces. The newly opened Manila-Cavite Coastal and it was at this point that Manila saw the Road is a by-pass of Radial Road # 1 for growing importance and usage of motorized Cavite Coastal area-bound passengers. transport called automobiles. To the north, the Manila North Diversion By 1936, the switch from trams to buses Road provides a relief for the over-saturated began and by 1942, passenger traffic was McArthur Highway leading to the Central and equally divided between streetcars and buses. Northern Luzon provinces. World War II, however, left most of the high To the east, the Marikina by-pass and the ways surfaces or pavements and railways severe Manila East Road, which is undergoing comple ly damaged. Tranvias, however, were rendered tion, provide access to outlying areas and relief inoperable, they had to be replaced by buses. to roads crossing the Marikina Valley, as well Damaged roads and railways were rehabilitated as, linkage to the eastern provinces of Luzon. later with reparation funds from Japan. On the other hand, Radial Road # 10, when Another post-war transport development completed, will serve as a by-pass going to the was the "jeepnev" which represented the des northwestern provinces. perate and ingenious response of a totally Furthermore, there is also a railway line for devastated city to its urgent transportation commuter services running from Malolos, Bula needs. Surplus army jeeps or the so-called can in the north to Carmona, Cavite in the McArthur type vehicles used during the war south. were hastily transformed into little buses with entrance at the rear, (later called auto calesas) Land Use Pattern to seat 8 passengers and made to ply Manila's half-bombed streets and tiighways. Since that The present EDSA was constructed (1955 time on, Filipino ingenuity transformed these 1965) in such a way that it surrounded the ur vehicles into highly decorated and vibrantly ban areas. This helped intensify the develop hand-painted "jeepnevs" which became the ment of existing areas and at the same time country's most popular and dominant public accelerate the new development along and out transport mode. side EDSA, such as business and commercial centers in Makati and Cubao and subdivision developments in Las Pifias, Marikina Valley, OVER-ALL URBAN TRANSPORT etc. The urban area is growing in all directions: SITUATION government-led reclamation to the west, popu lation-forced expansion to the northwest, and Metro Manila, situated at the southwestern private sector - led expansion to the north, portion of Luzon mainland, is made up of low south and east. The growth of Metro Manila lands from the coastal side towards the center, has resulted in a complex pattern of conti a valley (Marikina Valley) at the easternmost nually changing relationships and movements. side and, relatively high grounds (Guadalupe pla Makati has developed as a major business center teau) running north to south between the low and Quezon City as a government center. Major lands and the valley. Because of its strategic education areas are the university belt in Manila location, it is conveniently linked to the rest of and the Dillman area in Quezon City. Indus- 3 PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL Figure 2.1 METRO MANILA ROAD NETWORK LEdEND: PRIMARX ROADS SECONDARY ROADS ~~~ER SOURCE: MMUTSTRAP 4 PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL Figure 2.2 CONCEPTUAL HIGHWAY NETWORK IN THE METRO MANILA AREA "~-, _:~ t y, ! -tp-. <I' 'I" ;;~:'~ ",} \- LEGENO'· \> ~.~ EXISTING MAJOR '" THClAQlJ3HFARE ---'-•• PROPOSED MAJOff Tl-lOROUGHFARE 5 PHILIPPINE PLANNING JOURNAL trial areas include those along the Pasig and National roads 790 krns.

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