BY: VANESSA BUGTONG
From August to October this year, the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) – Traffic Enforcement Unit, in collaboration with other agencies, studied the implementation of the coding exemption for senior citizens in the city.
However, within the two months, challenges arose in its proper enforcement.
PLTCOL. Zacarias Caloy Dausen, Chief – Traffic Enforcement Unit of the BCPO, stated, “During the meeting, it was agreed to extend it until January to gather more data.”
Some gaps and issues were identified during its implementation.
“The problem is, we couldn’t compare data from before the exemption with data now that the exemption is in place,” Dausen added.
The number of police personnel in the city is also insufficient compared to the volume of vehicles.
“We need to assess whether senior citizen exemptions significantly impact traffic, particularly in Baguio’s central business district,” he mentioned.
The city government has decided to implement a modified scheme for senior citizens.
According to Mayor Benjamin Magalong, “From 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock, that’s the only window we’ll allow because earlier and later times are not feasible due to congestion.”
Meanwhile, the BCPO and city government continue to study solutions for the senior citizens’ coding exemption in Baguio City.
