CCTO executive director Paul Gotiong told SunStar Cebu on Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022, that they have proposed P1.5 million for the purchase of speed guns, but this still needs the approval of the City Council.
The CCTO previously reported that an average of 230 to 400 vehicular accidents have occurred on the city’s roads per month from January to July this year.
However, Gotiong said that they cannot categorize if these accidents happened due to speeding since it is the Philippine National Police’s Traffic Enforcement Unit that handles the investigation.
According to Gotiong, the CCTO has speed guns but they are not using them to apprehend reckless drivers due to the unreliability of the gadget.
“We actually have a speed gun, but it may not be that accurate, especially when we do apprehensions. It is a radar type. It is low quality since it only gives the average speed,” Gotiong said in a mix of English and Cebuano.
Once the budget is approved, Gotiong said they plan to acquire laser speed guns that have pinpoint accuracy in identifying the speed of the vehicle.
For now, the CCTO is just conducting an information drive to educate drivers about road safety and traffic rules, which include speeding.
Drivers who are caught speeding face a fine of P2,000 and are made to undergo four hours of seminar for the first offense; a fine of P2,500 plus four hours of seminar and three hours of community service for the second offense; and a fine of P3,000 plus the impounding of the vehicle for the third offense.
Meanwhile, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) has offered to work with the City Government to implement road safety measures.
Project Cares, an NGO composed of private companies, aims to help local government units craft ordinances that promote better road safety rules.
In a report from the City’s Public Information Office on Saturday, Oct. 8, Gotiong said the collaboration will allow the CCTO to present to the City Council some basis when crafting ordinances that will ensure commuter safety.