EMONG'S JOURNALS

After weeks under the general community quarantine (GCQ), workers in Metro Manila decided to head on to their jobs and tried what was the quickest way from their homes to their work destinations. Many people wish to traverse the frenetic north end of EDSA to the metro’s busy Makati district on a trip to their work, the lack of transportation notwithstanding. But travelling along EDSA now isn’t as difficult as you may think. A more accessible, convenient and faster mass transport system awaits commuters with the full implementation of the EDSA Carousel project. According to Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Danilo Lim, designating the innermost lane of Edsa exclusively for buses will help decongest traffic, thus reducing travel time from north to south entry points of EDSA and vice versa. “We are prioritizing the movement of more people on Edsa through a more efficient mass transport system,” Lim stressed, following the inspection yesterday of ...

The coronavirus pandemic has made driving a car through Metro Manila a difficult activity – with major roads choking with inching traffic as more people venture out of quarantine, wary of public transportation. There is no doubt that a highly visible 'Do Not Delay' sign on a motorist's windshield will notify the traffic enforcers and other drivers that he has precious essential cargo in his vehicle, putting him ahead of everybody else. In most cases you can expect other drivers to respect that fact and hopefully they drive less aggressive around him and give him more time or room. But one of the downsides is that a sign such as this one can be prone to abuse. Think about the times you've seen a 'Do Not Delay' sign in a car's windshield while driving. It piques a little bit of curiosity on your part. The sign makes you look over the car, and you have to admit, it's one of the most annoying feeling when you suddenly realize it was put there by...

More than 12 million people in the National Capital Region (NCR) are at risk of being plunged back under stricter MECQ conditions as a the growing number of infections causes a backslide in the nation’s return to normal. Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque affirmed this when he announced on Tuesday that Metro Manila can revert back to a stricter form of quarantine if the number of coronavirus cases continues to spike. “In the case of Metro Manila, (transitioning) to MGCQ (modified general community quarantine), it’s always dependent on data. We will look at the case doubling rate, we will look at the critical care capacity,” Roque said in a Malacañang virtual press briefing, adding that the decision to revert or downgrade the measures lies with the anti-COVID-19 task force. “If the (number of infected cases) increases, of course, there is a possibility that we won’t graduate to the next phase… If the trend continues, either we will remain under GCQ or we may go back to modif...

With the imposition of a general community quarantine (GCQ) in Metro Manila along with an array of social restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19), Filipinos are trying to adjust to a new normal that prioritizes public health during the pandemic and likely beyond. In this guide, I’ve rounded up the government's latest motoring guidelines to get you started, and to ensure your metro commuting is a safe, simple and worry-free experience. Contents 1. General guidelines 2. Modified number/color coding scheme - Exemptions 3. Private Vehicles - List of APORs 4. Public Utility Vehicles - Guidelines inside terminals - Cashless payments - LRT, MRT and PNR - Buses - Bus Routes - Modern jeepneys - UV Express - Taxis and TNVS - Motorcycle taxis - Tricycles 5. Commuters - Bike lanes - Pedestrian crossings - Bus/boarding stops General Guidelines - Mandatory wearing of face masks. - Social distancing. - For PUV...

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) has revised the guidelines for the nationwide community quarantine to allow more businesses to operate at full capacity. The revisions were adopted by the IATF-EID through its Resolution 38 inked on May 22, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press statement on Saturday. Complete List of Businesses in Full Operations Under ECQ, MECQ and GCQ IATF-EID Resolution 38, which contains the fresh guidelines, authorizes the full operation of public or private hospitals; health and emergency front-line services; and manufacturers of medicines, medical supplies, devices and equipment in areas under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), modified ECQ (MECQ), and general community quarantine (GCQ). The IATF-EID also allows industries involved in agriculture, forestry, and fishery, as well as those rendering delivery and courier services that are transporting food, medicine and oth...