Pedestrians are always reminded to keep to the sidewalk for their own safety, but look around and it’s easy to see how that’s easier said than done given the state of our pedestrian infrastructure. Sometimes, that state may be described as ‘nonexistent.’
This week, a video of a pedestrian surrounded by motorcycles as he tried to progress forward on Ortigas Avenue Extension went viral on Facebook. Watch it below:
Pedestrian caught in traffic on Ortigas Avenue Extension
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
932,220 motorcycles sold among ‘Big 4’ Japanese brands in first half of 2023
193 Vehicles—out of 314—failed the MMDA’s roadside emissions test in August
“Dito kahit maglakad ka matatraffic ka padin!” uploader Pinky Santos captioned the nine-second clip she uploaded on September 12. As of this writing, it has 1.3 million views and 41,300 reactions.
“Kuya wala ka choice wahahahaha,” Santos added.
In the comments section, Santos wrote: Fyi wala pong sidewalk sa part na yan. Ang tamang babaan ng pasahero ay sa bandang unahan pa. Kaya lang mas pinili na ni kuya bumaba at mag lakad kesa mag tiis hahaha.”
This particular area of Ortigas Avenue Extension is in the vicinity of SM City East Ortigas. The eastbound side (going to Rizal) shown on the video only has a bike lane, where the pedestrian and the motorcycles were. The westbound side (going to Ortigas CBD) has a sidewalk, but concrete barriers separate the opposing directions of the road. If you need to walk even a short distance on the westbound side from one establishment to another and your path includes a sidewalk-less stretch, it appears you’re forced to fight for space with bicycles, motorcycles, and four-wheeled vehicles.
Ortigas Avenue Extension connects Pasig and Rizal to the rest of Metro Manila, so you can imagine how many road users ply this thoroughfare at any given time of day. The traffic congestion there has long remained an unsolved problem, and the viral video highlights another problem with pedestrian and cyclist safety. And 40,000 ‘haha’ reacts on the viral video notwithstanding, the situation really is no laughing matter.
