At-grade crossings and wider lanes were among the suggestions voiced online to improve the EDSA Carousel Bus system.
Several commuters expressed these in a post about the recommended bus station design of Sweden to the Department of Transportation last week.
The DOTr on February 13 met with consultants from the Sweco International AB to inspect the EDSA Busway station at the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX).
During their meeting, the Swedish consultants provided a rendering of their recommended design to optimize the bus bay at the PITX.
This image soon caught the attention of several commuters.
Suggestion 1: At-grade crossings
Some of them suggested installing at-grade crossings instead of elevators for the convenience of persons with disabilities (PWDs) and seniors.
“Dapat at-grade crossing na lang na may speed table or stoplight [especially] for seniors and PWD. Mas mapapadali pa para sa mga kailangang tumawid ng EDSA,” one Facebook user said.
Suggestion 2: Sidewalks and bike lane
Other Filipinos also said there should be wider lanes for sidewalks and more than one lane for the buses.
“I think there should be an emphasis on the ‘wider’ sidewalk and the protected bike lane (where motorists shouldn’t be allowed) shown in the render,” one Facebook user said.
“Di po puwedeng single lane lang…Kasi kapag natrouble yung bus sa unahan, barado na yung busway. Wala ng madaanan. Isa lang ang masirang bus, apektado na ang lahat,” another commuter on Facebook commented.
Suggestion 3: Passenger flow through two-door buses
One Facebook user, meanwhile, shared ideas on improving the flow of loading and unloading passengers through the bus doors.
“Ang liit ng space para sa mga sasakay at bumababang passengers, pag nagsalubong, lalo na pag rush hours. And dapat dalawang doors, para sa mga bumababa at yung isang door para sa mga sasakay lang,” this Facebook user commented.
This public bus system was initially launched as a response to the limited public transport options for front-liners in June 2020.
The bus services were also previously offered for free for two years.
Regular fares have been implemented starting on January 1.
RELATED: Commuters air dismay over ‘libre na may reklamo pa’ post about EDSA bus carousel
The DOTr-Swedish consultants’ meeting
The Swedish consultants visited the Philippines last week to conduct a week-long evaluation of the EDSA Busway, according to the Facebook post of the transport agency.
Their findings and recommendations were then forwarded to Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista.
The Sweco team conducted the following activities during their evaluation at PITX:
- Inspection of the traffic flow along the perimeter of the terminal
- Inspection of the PITX bus bays
DOTr noted that this undertaking was accomplished to finalize Sweco’s overall study of the EDSA Carousel Bus System under a one-year contract.
The study is also being financially supported by Sweden.
The relatively new bus system along EDSA has been the subject of scrutiny since its implementation due to the long lines and longer travel time that commuters have to endure to avail of its services.
The situation also seemed to not improve even after the transport agency’s “Libreng Sakay” program ended last December.
READ: Long lines persist at EDSA Bus Carousel despite end of ‘libreng sakay’
The Move As One Coalition, a coalition of transport advocates, previously expressed alarm over the number of road crashes near the EDSA bus stations in just two years.
READ: Alarms raised over ‘preventable’ road crashes along EDSA Busway
