MMDA bares traffic rerouting scheme in Manila for Black Nazarene Procession on Friday

Anti-pollution watchdog, EcoWaste Coalition, urge devotees not to indiscriminately throw their trash during the January 9 procession in celebration of the Feast of the Black Nazarene on Monday (January 5, 2015) in front of the Quiapo Church. Last year, the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) collected some 336 tons of trash left by millions of devotees during the traslacion of the Black Nazarene in Quiapo district. (PNA photo by Avito C.Dalan)

MANILA — The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has announced that vehicular traffic in some streets of Manila will be rerouted on Friday, Jan. 9, in connection with the yearly procession marking the Feast of the Black Nazarene of Quiapo.

The procession, which highlights the yearly event, will start from the Quirino Grandstand at Manila’s Rizal Park from 6 a.m. onwards.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino said some 2,000 agency personnel will be deployed from 8 a.m. on Jan. 8, Thursday, at the Quiapo area in Manila.

Tolentino said the MMDA personnel will be composed of traffic enforcers to man traffic, rescue personnel to provide assistance in case of emergencies, and the agency’s Metro Parkway Clearing Group to clear the roads of garbage after the event.

The MMDA chief said that motorist and commuters must brace for heavy traffic in areas near the procession route and advised the public not to bring vehicles on the day of the feast.

He said they expect more devotees to join the annual religious procession this year since the Manila City government declared Friday a non-working holiday.

The route of the Grand Procession of the Black Nazarene will be from the Quirino Grandstand (Rizal Park), right to Katigbak Drive thru P. Burgos, left Taft Ave. (P. Burgos) thru Jones Bridge, right Escolta St., right Palanca St. thru under Quezon Bridge, left Quezon Blvd., right Arlegui, right Fraternal, right Vergara, left Duque de Alba, left Castillejos, left Farnecio, right Arlegui, left Nepomuceno, left Aguila, right Cancer, right Hidalgo thru Plaza del Carmen, left Bilibid Viejo thru Gonzalo Ruyat, left Guzman, right Hidalgo, left Barbosa, right Globo de Oro thru under Quezon Bridge, right Palanca, right Villalobos thru Plaza Miranda to Quiapo Church.

Closed to vehicular traffic starting at 9 p.m. on Jan. 8, Thursday, are Katigbak Drive and one lane of South Drive.

On the day of the procession, the following roads will be closed starting at 3 a.m.: MacArthur Bridge; Jones Bridge; Quezon Bridge; Roxas Boulevard (from Katigbak Drive to T.M Kalaw Avenue); both lanes of Quezon Boulevard from Andalucia/Fugoso to España/P. Campa southbound and Taft Avenue northbound.

In its advisory, a traffic rerouting scheme was released to guide motorists on Jan. 9 effective 12:01 a.m.:

1. All vehicles coming from Quezon City using the stretch of Espana shall turn right to P. Campa, left Andalucia, right Fugoso, left T. Mapua to point of destination.

2. All PUJs/light vehicles coming from Espana intending to proceed to South Pier Zone, turn left Nicanor Reyes, right Recto, straight to R-10, then left at R-10 to Delpan Bridge to destination.

3. All vehicles coming from northern part of Manila intending to utilize the stretch of Bonifacio Drive southbound shall turn right to Roberto S. Oca St., left Delgado, left Bonifacio Drive (for Port Area Offices) or right to A. Soriano to Magallanes Drive, right P. Burgos, go straight to Lagusnilad to Taft Avenue.

4. All vehicles coming from the southern part of Manila intending to utilize the stretch of P. Burgos shall take T.M. Kalaw, left Taft Avenue, right Ayala to Ayala Bridge to point of destination.

5. Private vehicles coming from the southern part of Manila intending to utilize the northbound of Roxas Blvd., shall turn right Quirino Avenue, and take Nagtahan Bridge to their destination.

6. All PUJs plying Monumento-Gasak-Recto intending to utilize Andalucia thru Recto shall turn right to Fugoso, right Oroquieta to point of origin.

7. All vehicles coming from Legarda shall turn right to Recto or left Mendiola to point of destination.

8. All vehicles/cargo trucks coming from the south shall take Pres. Osmena, right Pres. Quirino to Nagtahan via AH Lacson to Capulong (vice versa).

9. Other motorists intending to proceed to north of Manila or south of Manila are advised to utilize the stretch of Lacson to Nagtahan (vice versa) or to utilize the stretch of Road 10 to Roxas Boulevard (vice versa) to point of destination.

10. All buses coming from the eastern part of Manila particularly G-Liner/RRCG utilizing Legarda shall turn right at Recto Ave, right at Morayta, right at Espana, right Lacson Avenue, right Earnshaw then left at Legarda to point of origin.

11. All buses coming from Taft Ave going to Fairview shall turn right at UN Ave. up to Otis, left Nagtahan to straight Lacson, right Espana to point of origin.

12. All buses coming from southern part of Manila (Laguna and Cavite) utilizing Taft Ave. are not allowed to enter from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and allowed only up to Remedios St, right San Marcelino, back to point of origin.

MMDA Metro Parkway Clearing Group Chief Francis Martinez said that they will expect that truckloads of garbage will be collected by the agency that will be left behind by devotees on Friday’s Feast of the Black Nazarene in Manila’s Quiapo district.

With this, Martinez urged the vendors to help the authorities to collect the waste coming from their sell products just like the bottled waters, “ice tubig” (water inside the plastic) candy, biscuit, and wafer wrappers, as well as the sticks from banana-Q and barbecue that may be stepped on by the devotes who will in barefoot during the procession.