There Are New Pedestrian Lanes in Katipunan After QC Gov't Heeded a Fresh Grad's Request

(SPOT.ph) In a nation where there is more skepticism than faith towards local governments, it may be hard to believe an ordinary citizen's request would be heeded, but that's exactly what happened to one fresh graduate hoping for more walkable streets.

On May 17, Ateneo de Manila University fresh graduate Francis Caiga called the Quezon City government, requesting to have a sidewalk repaired and pedestrian lanes added to certain streets in Katipunan. Afterwards, he tweeted: “Now, it’s just waiting game. But what’s the success rate with requests like these?”

Exactly a week later on May 24, Quezon City delivered. The new pedestrian crossings can be found at the Katipunan Avenue corners of Rosa Alvero and F. Dela Rosa.

“I've had some interactions with LGU officials in the past for some research projects and thesis. Ever since then, I always believed that policymaking is a two-way street: the people and the government must be proactive,” Caiga told SPOT.ph. “[I] requested only these since I saw them as doable, and wanted to see as well if QC LGU would actually work on it—and they did!”

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Quezon City is heeding the call of its people

Following Caiga’s request, the Quezon City's official Facebook page reached out to him the next day. They asked for his full name, contact number, and address in order to forward his request to the concerned department, which is the Road Maintenance Division.

He was then contacted by Quezon City’s District III engineer for more information about his request. The engineer-in-charge also promised to get back to Caiga once the sidewalk repair has been completed.

In his original thread on Twitter, Caiga said: “I checked QC’s website, and it would usually take seven days to process the request, and then an additional 15 days for the technical scoping and whatnot. All in all, 22 days.” As we already know, it would only take the local government a week to paint the pedestrian lanes.

He added that his public tweet could have also helped speed up action on the local government’s end.

Caiga is still waiting for the Quezon City government to repair the sidewalk near Shakey’s Katipunan. In the meantime, the new pedestrian lanes are a small but significant step towards a more people-centric Katipunan.

“The change may seem small to some, but this is only one of the many things that can be changed in terms of urban design!” Caiga tweeted. “I enjoin residents, workers, and even students to reimagine safer, people-centric cities/spaces; in this particular case, Katipunan!”

Those who wish to similarly request for road maintenance or repair in Quezon City can check out the Road Maintenance Division’s official document.

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