MMDA head apologizes for steep PWD ramp on EDSA busway

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chairman Romando Artes on Thursday apologized for the steep PWD ramp at EDSA Busway’s PhilAm Station in Quezon City.

“Ako ay humihingi ng paumanhin sa ating mga kababayan kung ang impresyon nyo ay hindi po siya pinag-isipan. Hindi po, pinag-isipan po namin ito nang mabuti,” Artes said in an ambush interview.

(I apologize to the public if you get the impression that it was not well thought out. No, we planned it carefully.)

“Kinonsulta nating yung mga arkitekto natin, mga engineers sa traffic engineering center. Ito na po talaga yung kaya nating gawin, given the circumstance, yung situation po ng lugar,” he added.

(We consulted our architects, engineers at the traffic engineering center. This is really what we could come up with, given the circumstances and the situation in the area.)

In a statement, Senator Grace Poe suggested that the ramp ''be immediately fixed before an accident occurs.''

The former Senate public services committee chairperson said the country’s lack of facilities catering to persons with disabilities (PWD) should not be an excuse to pursue a project without thorough planning.

“It's exasperating to see millions of taxpayers' money spent on projects like this that endanger safety and life,” Poe said.

According to Artes, the MMDA will have a meeting with an architecture firm to come up with a solution.

“Iniisip namin kung we can go around para habahan. Ang problema, lalabas kami sa kalsada, which is delikado, hindi safe, baka masagi lang,” Artes said.

(We are thinking if we can go around to extend it. The problem is, we will go beyond the road, which is dangerous, not safe, it might hit people.)

“May challenge po talaga yung lugar. So, it's a choice between maglagay kami ng ganyan, or alisin completely. Yun lang po yung choice namin,” he added.

(The place poses a challenge. So, it's a choice between we put something like that or remove it completely. Those are our choices.)

Artes noted that only one of the five ramps they have built have issues but the rest have good elevation.

An architect who helped craft the implementing rules and regulations of Batas Pambansa No. 344 or the Accessibility Law said the PWD ramp was ten degrees steeper than the accepted standard.

Life Haven member and wheelchair user Nelson Belo tried the ramp and said he could not use it going up because it was too steep. It was also too dangerous for a wheelchair user to use going down.

“Kapag dumidiretso ako doon, may bakal nga, baka doon ako sumuot sa bakal (If I go straight down too fast, I might overshoot the rails),” Belo said.

Based on the implementing rules and regulations of Batas Pambansa 344 or the Accessibility Law, PWD ramps must be inclined at a 4.8 degree angle.

The MMDA said its personnel will be available to help persons with disabilities who might find it difficult to use the ramp. —with Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF/VBL, GMA Integrated News