Jaywalkers to pay Php 200 fine starting Tuesday

Pedestrians are warned against jaywalking by Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Francis Tolentino on Monday as its 100-strong "Men in Red" crew would start going after those who cross the streets illegally.

The lives of pedestrians are always on the line whenever they refuse to use the designated crossing lanes, said Tolentino.

"Our personnel rescued a man yesterday morning at the Quezon Avenue-Araneta Avenue intersection after he was hit by a car," He told a phone interview of Inquirer.

"If we [had] implemented the antijaywalking [policy today], the incident would never have happened," he added.

According to the official, The man was run down by a car around 11 a.m. as he was crossing the intersection.

A footbridge was use to be there in the area but it has to be removed to give way to the construction of an underpass.

Rescue workers of the MMDA took the victim to a nearby hospital, adding that he had yet to verify the condition of the man, said Tolentino.

"This is why the jaywalking ordinance is very, very important. The public's lives are at stake," the MMDA chairman emphasized. "Most of the time, the incidents are fatal and rarely do victims escape with a graze or a minor injury."

The ant jaywalking team of the MMDA is composed of 97 enforcers plus a number of trainers and will be deployed in several intersections on major streets in Metro Manila to monitor pedestrians.
Tolentino refused to reveal the locations of the Men in Red because he "did not want the public to avoid the enforcers."

On Monday, the MMDA went after jaywalkers but those who were caught are sampled with a warning.
Violators will face a fine of Php 200 and those who cannot pay will undergo a 15-minute on-the-spot disaster preparedness seminar starting on Tuesday.

Tolentino, citing statistics, said that about 54 percent of road accidents involved vehicles hitting pedestrians, a figure that he considered "alarming." -GIAN — ARA