During the Christmas break, we were reminded just how Katipunan Avenue can be congested due to the trips generated by the institutions along it. These are mainly the schools such as Ateneo, Miriam and UP. Based on my observations and experiences over the past decades though (I started attending UP in the late 1980s), the main culprit is Ateneo with all the private vehicles it generates for its students in all levels (Grade School, High School and College).

What “normal” traffic looks like on a typical weekday along Katipunan Avenue

My commute during the break is usually under 1 hour (e.g,, 40-50 minutes). But during the times when there’s school, it’s always more than an hour (e.g., 75 to 105 minutes). Will the situation improve? Will there be a mass transit system along C-5 to alleviate the traffic conditions? We can probably hope so but it doesn’t seem to be in the near horizon right now. The Metro Manila subway, after all, is expected to be operational in the 2030s!

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