By MARY ANN MANJA BAYANG

With the objective of minimizing pollution and traffic along Session Road, the City Government implemented a traffic scheme disallowing parking along Session Road between 6:00 A.M. to 9:00 A.M. and between 4:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M., which are the rush hours in the city. This scheme, however, brought inconvenience to motorists and customers of businesses along Session Road.

First, the problem on pollution cannot be solved or minimized by prohibiting parking along the road because vehicles parked do not emit pollutants.

Second, there is really no traffic problem to solve along Session Road during these rush hours. Although traffic sometimes slows down during these hours, it is not due to the existence of parked cars along the road but due to the volume of pedestrians crossing the road.

It is also worth noting that in this less than a kilometer stretch of a road, there are six (6) pedestrian lanes. It is only in one pedestrian lane (in front of Mc Donalds) where traffic light is provided. The better solution to solve traffic problem (if any) along Session Road is to lessen pedestrian lanes and provide traffic lights in intersections to organize the use of the road by both vehicles and pedestrians.

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This new traffic scheme contributes to the traffic problem because vehicle owners have to remove all parked cars along the road around 4:00PM thus causing more traffic problem in the area during the rush hour.

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It is even seldom that you see a traffic policeman along Session Road – a sign that traffic is not a problem.

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Session Road at night is not as festive as when there were night vendors selling various stuff to the public. Their transfer to Harrison road has certainly lessened traffic along the sidewalks but it has diminished the bliss of strolling in the evenings at Session Road.

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The Session Road Business Association is up in arms against the organizers of this year’s Panagbenga Session Road in Bloom for excluding them from the use of the road to sell their merchandise. It would be a “bloody situation” to deprive them of the use of their own front yard and bring in strangers instead.

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The use of Session Road for march rallies and parades, and for other activities requires a permit from the City Government. Failure to acquire a permit gives authority to policemen to stop any activity or demolish selling tents or construction.

In the mornings, and sometimes afternoons, there is a woman with a megaphone standing at the intersection of Session Road and Mabini Street shouting to the public. She is not a policewoman as she is in civilian clothes and sometimes wears a native skirt. I wonder if she has to have a permit to conduct her activities on that portion of the road. #