MANILA-Senator Loren Legarda today expressed her support to the cause of the Share the Road Movement towards safer and cleaner roads through the promotion of non-motorized transportation.
“As I convey my support to this campaign, I congratulate Atty. Tony Oposa and the Share the Road Movement for championing environmental causes as well as the right of Filipinos for a healthier society,” said Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committees on Environment and Natural Resources, and Climate Change.
“Among the advocacies I have been promoting is the shift to a low-carbon lifestyle and rethinking our mode of transportation is one of the crucial steps towards this initiative,” she added.
The Share the Road Movement led by Atty. Oposa filed a petition for a writ of kalikasan and mandamus before the Supreme Court compelling government to “divide the roads in half: half for cars and half for collective transport systems, like all-weather bike lanes and sidewalks, bus rapid transit, and public trains.”
The group, which noted a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that the transport sector contributes 27% of the greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, proceeded to the Senate for the ceremonial turnover of the draft bill on Sustainable Transportation.
In supporting the group’s cause, Legarda, author of various environmental laws including the Solid Waste Management Act and the Clean Air Act, stressed on the need to shift to mass rail, human-powered transport and pedestrianization.
“We should start venturing into transport electrification and energy efficiency. Walking, biking, taking public transport, and carpooling are energy and cost-efficient transport modes that we should always consider whenever possible,” she said.
She explained that local government units should make roads walkable and pedestrian-friendly. Sidewalks and bicycle lanes should also be built to encourage use of these modes of transport.
“It may take time before we see this coming into fruition but with political will to faithfully implement our laws and the active campaign of advocacy groups, especially those behind the Share the Road Movement, we can make this happen,” Legarda concluded.
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