MANILA — The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will be hosting a forum on the use of information and communications technology (ICT) to help address the traffic situation in Metro Manila and ensure ease of mobility among its residents.
The event, which focuses on Intelligent Transportation System and Smart City Components, will be held on Thursday, May 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the SMX Convention Center Hall, Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay City.
The forum is expected to gather officials of the MMDA, House of Representatives Seoul Metropolitan Government, Metro Manila local government units, and other government officials to exchange views on how to ease the traffic congestion in the metropolis.
“We are now looking into new and innovative solutions to address Metro Manila’s growing transportation needs and traffic problems brought by the increasing number of vehicles. May this forum serve as venue for us to promote exchanges in finding new ideas and well-designed technology tools that can benefit government agencies and the public,” MMDA Chairman Danilo Lim said in a statement Tuesday.
The MMDA chief will be welcoming guests and participants of the forum while Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo, chairperson of the House Committee on Metropolitan Manila Development, will deliver his inspirational message.
A highlight of the event is the presentation by Dr. Kim Wan Jib of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, South Korea of Seoul’s Transportation Operation and Information Service (TOPIS), an integrated traffic management facility that operates and manages the capital’s traffic situation.
TOPIS serves as a traffic control system in Seoul which gathers a wide range of traffic information from the Bus Management System, current traffic situation from the Transport Card System and other sources. Real time information are processed and provided to traffic facility users and public transportation information managers operating buses, subway trains, parking facilities, among others.
The forum will also cover Smart City Projects and Strategies of Seoul, South Korea’s capital and largest metropolis recognized as one of the smartest, most connected city in the world.
Technologies that make Seoul among the Smartest Cities in the World will be presented during the event.
Intelligent Transport System is defined as a system in which ICT are applied in the field of road transportation including infrastructure, vehicles and users, and in traffic management and mobility management, as well as for interfaces with other modes of transport. It hopes to improve the efficiency of transport in a number of situations such as road transport, traffic management, mobility, etc.
A recent study from the Japan International Cooperation Agency showed that the Philippines is losing PHP3.5 billion a day due to worsening traffic in Metro Manila.
Among the reasons that contribute to the traffic problem in Metro Manila include increasing number of private vehicles, inadequate road infrastructure, and lack of efficient public transportation vehicles.
Lim believes that the traffic in the metropolis will be solved through strict implementation of the traffic laws as well as discipline and cooperation of all stakeholders. (MMDA-PR/PNA)
