Avoid transport caravan routes in QC Thursday, motorists advised

Motorists may have to avoid the Quezon Memorial Circle and Quezon Avenue in Quezon City early Thursday to avoid being caught in traffic stemming from the protest caravan transport groups have set for the day. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority issued the advice even as it continued coordinating with the police and military to assist commuters who may be affected by Thursday’s activity. Some 5,000 police personnel will secure areas in Metro Manila affected by the caravan and help facilitate traffic flow on Thursday, radio dzBB reported early Wednesday. The police and military in Metro Manila will also deploy vehicles to give free rides to commuters who might get stranded. In Manila, dzBB’s Carlo Mateo reported the Philippine Coast Guard will also deploy its buses to help affected commuters. For their part, militant transport groups downplayed the warning given by Malacañang that a transport strike may lead to the suspension or even cancellation of their franchises. Militant transport group Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (PISTON) said the caravan aims to protest continued hikes in the prices of fuel products. PISTON’s allies in the provinces, including Mindanao and Pampanga in Central Luzon, are set to stage transport strikes on the same day. “All systems go na tayo. Siguro tsunami o lindol lang makapagpigil (It’s all systems go for the transport caravan. Only a tsunami or an earthquake can stop us)," PISTON secretary general George San Mateo said in an interview on dzBB radio Wednesday. San Mateo said they expect at least 200 vehicles to join the caravan from the Quezon Memorial Circle to the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Manila. He said that once the caravan reaches the UST campus area, participants will march to Mendiola Bridge near Malacañang. Also, he branded Malacañang’s warning of the possible cancellation of their franchises as a “diversionary tactic" to keep the public’s mind out of the issue of fuel price hikes. “Yung issue rito kapabayaan ng gobyerno kaya nangyayari ang patuloy na overpricing sa presyo ng langis," he said. San Mateo said they expect the transport strikes by PISTON allies in Mindanao and Pampanga to paralyze public transport there. He said the transport groups staging a strike on Thursday already informed commuters there about their plan one week in advance. “Kumpyansa kami na 101 percent mapaparalisa ang mga area kung saan ipatutupad ang strike namin (I am 101 percent sure we can cripple transportation in areas where the strikes will be held)," he said. — LBG, GMA News.