The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has expressed its readiness for the Oplan Balik Eskwela 2022 to ensure the safe resumption of 100% in-person classes nationwide in August.
Atty. Victor Nuñez, Head of MMDA Traffic Discipline Office (TDO) – Enforcement, said the agency is committed to protecting children traveling to school in preparation for the academic year 2022-2023.
“We will have a meeting with the school administrators, Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA), and local traffic bureaus in the National Capital Region to discuss road safety checks in school zones,” Nuñez said during the celebration of the National Safe Kids Week held at the MMDA Traffic Academy in Sta. Mesa, Manila.
“Road safety is a shared responsibility.”
“Let me emphasize that road safety is a shared responsibility. We will ensure that enforcement of traffic laws, in constant coordination with the Department of Transportation (DOTr), Land Transportation Office (LTO), and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), are in place to keep tabs on motorists to protect the safety of vulnerable road users,” he added.
According to Nuñez, there is an ongoing repainting of pedestrian lanes within the immediate vicinity of schools in Metro Manila.
The MMDA also has a Children’s Road Safety Park in Adriatico, Manila aimed to give children a deeper understanding of safety on the road and traffic discipline.
For his part, DOTr Undersecretary Mark Steven Pastor stressed the importance of raising awareness among all road users and implementing road safety interventions.
“We have to protect them as we embark on the full implementation of face-to-face classes.”
“Our primary advocacy is to strictly enforce existing road safety laws. Children go out of their houses and take public transportation to go to school. Hence, we have to protect them as we embark on the full implementation of face-to-face classes,” Pastor said.
Meanwhile, Roberto Valera, LTO Law Enforcement Service Deputy Director, pointed out why enforcement of road safety laws is important.
“LTO is a road safety advocate. A strong, sustained, and highly visible enforcement is needed to prevent road crash incidents involving children,” Valera stressed.
