When news of the multi-vehicle accident along the Bacolod-Silay Airport access road hit airwaves and social media, I told myself it was not a “real accident.”

Drivers who are superbly ignorant of defensive driving are often involved in mishaps. When you drive, one must expected the uncertain; this mean, when a passenger bus pulls over to drop off a passenger, motorists following the bus must slow down and blow their horn in the event somebody was planning to cross the street – common sense. In the case of the recent crash, driving over 100 kilometers per hour (kph) leaves the driver with few other options – driving at 80 kph is much safer.

My advice: Keep a distance of around 20 meters from the car in front of you that will give you enough space to slow down after stepping on the brakes.

In Metro Manila, a tractor-trailer driver’s claims of nonfunctioning brakes were false – it’s his brain that was not functioning. If you are driving along a crowded highway, tractor-trailers should not be driving more than 50 kph since, when the driver applies the brakes at a higher speed, they will be unable to control the pressure of the shifting weight from the cargo being hauled, end up moving forward, and hitting another vehicle.

With the Bacolod-Silay Airport access road situation, a driver who does not understand how to properly overtake another vehicle will cause trouble. When executing an overtaking maneuver, one must be driving three times faster than the vehicle in question and there should be no approaching vehicles within 200 meters.

If the cars involved in the accident were 30 meters or more away, and driving less than 100 kph, their brakes would have handled things.

Not to mention, one even admitted they were texting at the time.

After the incident, the Philippine National Police and traffic personnel will be seen along the roadway. That’s typical – something has to happen before taking action.

Today, traffic management in the city is no longer given significance. Why? Who know?

***

It was a privilege to learn about road discipline and management from my good friend, former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chair and Marikina City Mayor Bayani Fernando, who currently serves as the city’s incumbent first district congressman. Those lessons were not learned from books, but his brilliance.

***

This column greets Reuben Tampos, Nato Novero, Art Colmedora, Alex Pastor, Mike Trani, Vladi Gonzales, Rey Bala-an, Vic Tan, Dodong Bascon, Warren Concepcion, Leo Rey Yanson, Marlon Navarro, Francis Chu, Raymond Dabao, Nonong dela Cruz, and Mark Jimenez./WDJ