I CANNOT help but wonder why diggings on roads all over the city appear to have been abandoned by whoever is or are supposed to finish them. Is the culprit the DPWH or is it somebody else?
From the eyes of a layman, there already is an unreasonable delay in finishing most of the road works.
What aggravates the situation is that workers are visibly absent in many of the road diggings that practically already make the city seem like an archeological site.
Those road diggings (reblocking, repairs, drainage construction, or improvement) are reportedly projects of the DPWH. From the look of it, there seems to be a problem in accrediting contractors, and ultimately enforcing penalties for slippage.
The diggings add to the current traffic problems that the City is facing. And it is the city that gets generally bashed, not the DPWH or any contractor. It is the city that absorbs the problem, not the road diggers!
For this reason alone, the Roads and Traffic Administration should enter the scene. It has to impose certain conditions that road diggers must comply with, including the imposition of hefty penalties for delays, or the posting of performance bonds to compensate the City for any resulting negative public perception or the additional cost of managing traffic in digging sites.
I was informed that special permits for road closures due to road works are granted for a specified period only. Therefore, every time delays creep in, those responsible principals and contractors must be penalized.
Unless the road diggers do justice to their contracts, motorists and another road user better be warned of dangerous roads!
