Pedestrian Lanes are designed for people to safely cross the streets. Generally, these are often found at intersections where it is too dangerous to cross without assistance. These lanes are proven beneficial to persons with disabilities which can significantly reduce the risk for accidents. However, there are some instances where these lanes are inaccessible; they are being blocked by road vehicles.

One of the causes of obstruction is that vehicles often fail to slow down on a yellow light signal. According to the research done by Felicio, Grepo, Reyes, and Yupingkun (2015), slowing down was the least preferred behavior of drivers at yellow lights. They found out that even though drivers claim to slow down at yellow lights, their actual behavior is different. This behavior of drivers in Metro Manila was also observed by Michael Brown (2015):

• “At intersections controlled by traffic lights, vehicles typically stop right on the cross-walk, forcing pedestrians to zig-zag through the line of vehicles to the other side. The white ‘stop-line’, which marks the point before the crosswalk where the first vehicle is supposed to stop, is completely ignored by both drivers and enforcers. I suspect that the average driver, and the average traffic enforcer, have no idea what that line is actually for. Once the red light changes to green, the stopped vehicles start moving immediately, their drivers completely ignoring the pedestrians who must scurry quickly out of the road.”

This may be a nuisance to the pedestrians. They will have a hard time crossing. Some of them might be forced to jaywalk because of this. Brown also stated the bad design of pedestrian crossing at intersections:

• “At intersections equipped with pedestrian-crossing lights, the design itself is usually faulty. When a pedestrian light turns green, indicating that it is safe to cross, the flow of straightaway traffic is made to stop, but vehicles turning from the intersecting road continue to turn, right through the crossing pedestrians.”

There is also an instance where the pedestrian lane is obstructed with barricades which defeats the very purpose of the lane itself. Sidewalks are also often too narrow or shared with vendors, electric posts and vehicles that obstruct the lane for people. In some extreme cases, motorcycle drivers ignore the definition of the word “sidewalk”:

There are existing House Bills, specifically House Bill No: 1752 about Pedestrian Safety, particularly the Pedestrian Protection Act of 2013, but they have yet to be employed within the city and is thus not practiced by drivers. In Metro Manila, where there are approximately 2.5 million registered cars (based from 2015 statistics of LTO), the public's right towards pedestrian lanes are frequently violated. This petition calls for a strict compliance of drivers towards the protection and rights of the pedestrians, particularly in NCR.   

This is a report where the safety of pedestrians are put into risk:

• Back in 2013, there were over 5,800 pedestrians were run over along Metro Manila streets. One -fourth of the victims were students with 1,328 of them getting struck by vehicles the prior year. The areas have no traffic lights, speed limit signages, nor barricades. (GMA News, 2014)

When drivers disobey these rules, it increases the risks regarding the safety of the people. We should remember that pedestrians are still a part of the overall traffic schema, but instead, we’ve grown to develop a more motorist-centric attitude in traffic affairs.

“Roads get wider and busier and less friendly to pedestrians… everything seems to be designed for the benefit of the automobile and not the benefit of the human being.” - Bill Bryson

While in most countries, it is the motorist’s obligation to give-way to pedestrians, in the Philippines, it’s the pedestrians obligation to not get hit by motorists in unguarded crossing lanes. However, it’s not entirely the motorists’ fault, jaywalkers are also shining beacons screaming “hit me” as they cross roads infested with speeding cars against pedestrian rules.

But enough pointing fingers, here are some solutions:                     

1. TRAFFIC CALMING STRATEGIES: 

    Widespread implementation of traffic calming strategies beyond speed bumps and speed limits, such as curb extensions and raised mid-block median islands.

   -To reduce speed that comes to a significant reduction in the number and severity of crashes involving vehicles.
   -To improve the physical design of roads for better pedestrian and motorist safety.
   -To slow down fast-moving traffic flow.
   -To improve pedestrian visibility to motorists.

2. ENACTMENT OF HOUSE BILL 1752:  

   The enactment of House Bill 1752, better known as the Pedestrian Protection Act of 2013, has long been overdue, being stuck in the bureaucratic purgatory since July 24, 2013.

   -To make drivers responsible to yield before crossing pedestrians.
   -To define the rights and responsibilities of a pedestrian.
   -To define the duty of Local Government Units (LGUs) and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in protecting pedestrian lives and rights.
   -To provide sanctions against non-compliance of both drivers and pedestrians.

3. KEEPING HEADS COOL: 

   Providing shading in the form of waiting sheds near pedestrian crossings, especially in arterial roads.

   -To decrease likelihood of jaywalking by improving waiting comfort of pedestrians.

4. PEDESTRIAN SAFETY COMMITTEE: 

   Formation of a pedestrian safety committee or any organization responsible for the safety of pedestrians; the same solution does not always work on all roads.

   -To be able to improve pedestrian safety in roads under specific circumstances using specific solutions.
   -To reduce burden on MMDA in regulating overall traffic safety.

5. SOCIAL ENGINEERING CAMPAIGNS 

   Developing a “give-way” mentality to drivers in the Philippines by launching advertisement and campaigns. Social engineers would be required to design more appropriate methods in influencing the public.

   -To maintain motorist-pedestrian harmony in an unguarded and unregulated pedestrian lane.
   -To develop a “safety-over-speed” mentality.
   -To improve socio-centric reasoning of drivers and pedestrians in traffic. 

6. HARDLINE ENFORCEMENT:

   In the 7th of April, 2017, Makati implemented strict regulations for vehicles blocking pedestrian lanes and apprehended 454 violators: this is Hardline enforcement; it is to aggressively implement the law with zero-tolerance.

   -To induce a larger sense of necessity for both pedestrians and motorists to follow traffic rules.
   -To dissuade potential violators by sanctioning previous violators with relatively heavy consequences.
   -To increase traffic enforcement presence in the streets and thus reduce unguarded pedestrian crossings.
   -To apprehend and dissuade sidewalk kiosks that occupy entire sidewalks.

“There are two kinds of pedestrians... the quick and the dead.” - Thomas Dewar

According to the World Health Organization's (WHO) Road Safety Report in 2015, pedestrians make up 19% of road traffic fatalities in the Philippines, followed by four-wheeled vehicles at 14%. It’s a grim statistic that few likes to acknowledge, but to accept or not, this is reality - a reality that we can change.