IN BOGO City, Cebu, the local lawmakers have passed an ordinance that protects cyclists from being run over by buses and other vehicles by slapping them with a fine if they are caught pedalling four meters near them.
Cyclists could tap into their undiscovered mathematical prowess to calculate their distance from vehicles because the ordinance stipulates that they must make sure they are pedalling from afar by at least five meters.
Before approving Ordinance No. 041-2020, the City Council had taken notice of the rise of cycling as one of its constituents’ recreational activities amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The City Council and the City Government expressed their worry about the rising incidents in the city involving bicycles as more public utility vehicles have been allowed to transport passengers since the entire Cebu got its modified general community quarantine status.
The local lawmakers led by City Councilor Alex Sevilla eventually crafted the ordinance to protect their bicycle-loving constituents from harm.
Aside from reminding the cyclists to keep their distance at five meters, they must wear a bicycle helmet, and at night, they must attach headlights and backlights to their bicycles as well as a horn.
They must also wear a reflective vest that illuminates at night.
The ordinance states that adults must accompany cyclists who are 15 years old and below, and parking the bicycle on the road is prohibited.
As to enforcing the five-meter-distance rule, it was not yet clear on how Bogo City traffic enforcers would catch a daredevil cyclist.
Violation of any of these prohibitions would cost a hapless cyclist P500 in fine, and the amount could be paid in a P500 bill, which has the images of former
President Corazon Aquino and her husband, the slain senator Benigno Aquino Jr., who once said that “the Filipino is worth dying for.” (ANV / KAL)