Only if the current lanes get a diet
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is looking to add a dedicated, motorcycle lane in the busiest stretch of highway in the Philippines.
MMDA General Manager Jojo Garcia said that they were looking at adding a motorcycle lane right beside the bus lane in EDSA, which would be exclusively for two-wheeled vehicles.
Adding that additional lane means putting the current 5 to 6 lane highway on a diet, reducing the width of each lane that currently stands at 3.5 to 3.7 meters to barely over 3 meters (3.05 meters to be exact).
The MMDA’s proposal to reduce the width of the lanes in EDSA isn’t without precedent – other countries like Amsterdam, Tokyo, and Paris have slimmer lanes compared to the standard size in EDSA today, and studies have shown that slimmer lanes have the lowest crash fatality rates.
With the roads narrowed, there will now be six lanes on EDSA:
- 2 lanes for passenger buses
- 1 lane for motorcycles
- 3 lanes for private vehicles
