To alleviate the heavy traffic flow along Commonwealth Avenue, the Quezon City government and MMDA are studying the implementation of a zipper lane and road diversion. A dry-run is scheduled starting December 31, 2020 until January 03, 2021, from 6AM to 11AM.

With the on-going Build-Build-Build projects of the national government, including the MRT-7 partly along Commonwealth Avenue, traffic build-up is usually experienced from the Don Antonio area up to Quezon Memorial Circle (QMC) westbound during rush hours. To address this, the Quezon City government decided to open a zipper lane or counterflow lane in order to address the heavy congestion in these areas.

“Since the MRT-7 construction in the Elliptical Road-North Avenue interchange will be extended for another two months, we will have to devise ways to ease up the flow of traffic especially after the holiday season,” Mayor Joy Belmonte said.

Starting December 31, 2020, a dry-run for a proposed zipper lane will be opened, starting from the Luzon Avenue-Tandang Sora Avenue area, while on Saturday, January 2, another entrance will be opened in front of UP-Ayala Technohub.

The zipper lane will end at the corner of Commonwealth Avenue eastbound and University Avenue leading to the University of the Philippines – Diliman. Here motorists can turn left to enter UP and proceed to C.P. Garcia Ave. and onwards, and by-passing the heavily congested stretch of Philcoa until North Avenue during weekday morning rush hours.

Assistant City Administrator Alberto Kimpo said that this initiative is meant to give an alternative route to motorists.

“Instead of going through the traffic in the Philcoa area westbound, entering the Elliptical Road, all the way to North Avenue, motorists can use the zipper lane and go directly to to C.P. Garcia,” Kimpo said.

Meanwhile, motorists coming from the Elliptical Road will have to turn right to the University Avenue and make a u-turn in the crossing of University Avenue and C.P. Garcia Avenue to re-enter Commonwealth Avenue.

Kimpo assured motorists that traffic enforcers, signages, and barriers will be properly installed in the areas to guide motorists in this alternative traffic scheme.

“Aside from our Task Force on Transport and Traffic Management personnel, MMDA and the MRT-7 contractor EEI will help deploy additional manpower in the area to ensure smooth flow of traffic,” Kimpo added.

The city government hopes that this will lessen the buildup along Commonwealth Avenue towards QMC and shorten the travel time of most motorists.

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