The Bayanihan to Recover as One Act provides funds for ₱814 million for 306 kilometers of protected bike lanes in Metro Manila. Bayanihan 2 was signed into law on 11 September 2020. Almost five months later, though, we have yet to see a single kilometer of protected bike lanes funded by Bayanihan 2 built on EDSA and other national roads in Metro Manila.

The national government is responsible for building the Metro Manila Bike Lane Network. The latest President’s Report dated 4 January 2021 states that the network has been “awarded to winning bidders.” However, to date, the construction of these bike lanes has not begun.

This delay is unacceptable. It is a slap in the face of hardworking Filipino frontline and essential workers–taxpayers all–who have taken to riding their bicycles to work to cope with the lack of public transport during the lockdown. These everyday heroes have been tirelessly battling the COVID-19 crisis and working to feed their families and to get the economy back on its feet. The least the government can do is to give them protected bike lanes to keep them safe on the road.

We* call on the national government agencies, particularly the Department of Transportation (DOTr), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), to build these protected bike lanes NOW. The pandemic offers you an unparalleled opportunity to transform the country’s roads into fairer, safer, and more inclusive infrastructure now and for generations to come. Please don’t waste it. Please listen to the 9 out of 10 Filipinos who believe that “roads in Philippine cities and municipalities will be better off if public transportation, bicycles, and pedestrians are given priority over private vehicles.” [1] This will be one of the defining issues in the 2022 elections.

*This joint statement is signed by:

  • Advocates of Inclusion
  • Alt Mobility PH
  • Bicycle Friendly Philippines
  • Bike Med
  • Bike to Work Pilipinas
  • Bikers United Movement
  • Bisikleta Pilipinas Coalition
  • Bike Scouts
  • Citizens’ Budget Tracker
  • Commuters PH
  • Compact Utility Bike x Climate Action Tech
  • Cycle Bros
  • Cycling HeARTs
  • Cycling Matters
  • Daily Cycle Movement
  • Dumangas Bikers Association
  • EDSA Evolution
  • The Firefly Brigade
  • First Bike Ride
  • Greenpeace Philippines
  • ICSC
  • Kalyelista
  • Komyut Commuters Online
  • Life Cycles PH
  • Living Laudato Si
  • Mobile in MNL
  • Mobility Awards
  • Move As One
  • Move Metro Manila
  • MNL Moves
  • The Passenger Forum
  • Philippine Permaculture Association
  • Pinay Bike Commuter Community
  • Pinoy Road Bikers
  • R8BAC
  • Roadbike.Ph
  • Tiklop Society of the Philippines

#ProtectedBikeLanesNow #MovePeopleNotCars

1 Social Weather Stations. “Fourth Quarter 2020 Social Weather Survey Items for the Department of Health.”