Bacolod City is actively seeking strategies to enhance the utilization of the newly inaugurated Bacolod-Negros Occidental Economic Highway (BANOCEH). Councilor Al Victor Espino, who leads the city’s traffic and transportation committee, has announced that the City Council is currently reviewing a study from the Bacolod Traffic and Transportation Management Department (BTTMD). This study proposes limiting the access of trucks, large vehicles, and heavy equipment to the busy Circumferential Road, redirecting them to use the BANOCEH exclusively.
Espino emphasized that this proposed ordinance would effectively ban trucks, particularly sugarcane trucks, from the Circumferential Road, thereby maximizing the use of the BANOCEH. He believes that this measure will not only optimize the new highway but also enhance safety for both motorists and pedestrians on the Circumferential Road, which sees heavy traffic daily and runs past the Bacolod City Government Center.
The City Council has recently passed a resolution instructing the BTTMD to evaluate the practicality of enforcing this vehicle restriction. Additionally, the City Planning and Development Office has been tasked with studying how resources can be best allocated to support the utilization of the BANOCEH.
The BANOCEH, a significant infrastructure project costing over PHP7 billion and funded by the national government, was completed on August 30. This modern road network, stretching 48.8 kilometers from Bacolod South Road junction in Barangay Sum-ag to Bacolod North Road junction in Victorias City, includes the construction and enhancement of 16 bridges, aimed at fostering new growth centers in the region.