2019

This is an Awardee of the Government Best Practice Recognition Awards

Title

MMDA Children’s Road Safety Park: Keeping Children Safe on the Roads

Organization

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority

Best practice Focus Area(s)

Customer and citizen focus

Year Implemented

2012

Summary

The MMDA Children’s Road Safety Park was built to provide a venue for children where they can learn and observe traffic rules and regulations, realize its importance, and have a deeper understanding of road safety in a controlled setting. It showcases mini traffic-related infrastructures such as bike lanes, rotunda, pedestrian crossing/intersections, road signs, footbridge, sidewalks with curb and drainage system. It also has miniature building structures like school, office, church, hospital, waiting shed, gasoline station, and food establishment.

Although it was patterned after the Road Safety Community Park of Singapore, the MMDA initiated this new innovation. The MMDA manages and maintains the Children’s Road Safety Park after the “Paraiso ng Batang Maynila”, a children’s playground, was turned over by the City of Manila sometime in 2012. From a mere children’s playground, the MMDA transformed it into a Children’s Road Safety Park that was established on November 15, 2012.

Background and Problem

Every year since 2010, more than 8,000 Filipinos have lost their lives due to road crashes. Among those at risk are children aged 14 years and below. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority shows that an average of 671 children died every year from 2006 to 2014, with those 5-9 years old and 10-14 years old ending up the most vulnerable. Alarmed by the growing number of deaths due to road accidents yearly in the country and to arrest such senseless fatalities involving children in Metro Manila, the MMDA felt the urgency to undertake measures to address the growing concern of road safety among children and the first step is through collaboration among concerned stakeholders. 

Responding to calls for urgent action, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2011-2020 the “Decade of Action for Road Safety.”  Thus, in 2011 the government developed the Philippine Road Safety Action Plan 2011-2020, a decade of action for road safety. The specific goal is to reduce by 50% the traffic accident rate in 2020. To address the concern on road safety education for vulnerable road users, the establishment and operation of Road Safety Park are one of the strategies that were identified for the medium-term (2011-2015). The collaboration was spearheaded by the DOTC, UP-NCTS, AAP, Boy Scouts of the Phils., NCCP, Fresnedi Foundation, Safe Kids Phils. and other partners including the MMDA. As an immediate response, the MMDA manages and maintains a Children’s Road Safety Park in November 2012 by virtue of MMDA Resolution No. 12-23, s. 2012.

Solution and Impact

Every year since 2010, more than 8,000 Filipinos have lost their lives due to road crashes. Among those at risk are children aged 14 years and below. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority shows that an average of 671 children died every year from 2006 to 2014, with those 5-9 years old and 10-14 years old ending up the most vulnerable. Alarmed by the growing number of deaths due to road accidents yearly in the country and to arrest such senseless fatalities involving children in Metro Manila, the MMDA felt the urgency to undertake measures to address the growing concern of road safety among children and the first step is through collaboration among concerned stakeholders.

Responding to calls for urgent action, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2011-2020 the “Decade of Action for Road Safety.”  Thus, in 2011 the government developed the Philippine Road Safety Action Plan 2011-2020, a decade of action for road safety. The specific goal is to reduce by 50% the traffic accident rate in 2020. To address the concern on road safety education for vulnerable road users, the establishment and operation of Road Safety Park are one of the strategies that was identified for the medium-term (2011-2015). The collaboration was spearheaded by the DOTC, UP-NCTS, AAP, Boy Scouts of the Phils., NCCP, Fresnedi Foundation, Safe Kids Phils. and other partners including the MMDA. As an immediate response, the MMDA manages and maintains a Children’s Road Safety Park in November 2012 by virtue of MMDA Resolution No. 12-23, s. 2012.

Milestones

In 2012, the MMDA transformed the “Paraiso ng Batang Maynila” into a learning ground for children’s road traffic safety. The MMDA Children’s Road Safety Park has a simulated urban traffic environment that aims to educate the children about road safety, understanding and familiarization of traffic signs, potential dangers on the roads, and traffic discipline.

The following are the standard operating procedures in the scheduling of tours at the MMDA Children’s Road Safety Park:

  1. Prepare a letter request addressed to MMDA management reflecting the following information:
    • Preferred date and time of tour
    • Complete list of the names of all visitors
    • Complete name, address, and contact details of the group’s contact person
  2. The request letter can be sent in two (2) ways: Email at mmdaroadsafetypark@gmail.com and Submit hard copy directly to MMDA Records Division.
    • The letter request must either be acknowledged by the Traffic Education Division (if via email) or received by the MMDA Records Division (if hard copy) seven (7) working days before the preferred schedule.
  3. The letter request will be processed as follows:
    • If via email:  Traffic Education Division (TED) will acknowledge receipt of the email request pending confirmation of the preferred tour schedule. TED will coordinate with the requesting party for confirmation of the final and approved schedule.
    • If forwarded to MMDA Office:  Records Division will receive the request letter and forward the same to the TED copy furnished the Office of the Assistant General Manager for Operations (OAGMO).
    • TED will coordinate with the requesting party for confirmation of the final and approved schedule.
    • The OAGMO will forward the request to the TED for appropriate action.  TED will coordinate with the requesting party to relay whether the preferred schedule is approved or disapproved due to conflict with another schedule thus needs rescheduling.
  4. Only the walk-in visitors and groups with a confirmed schedule can enter the Children’s Road Safety Park.  Accompanied by the CRSP personnel, they will explore the park through these activities:
  • REGISTER:  Walk-in visitors and tour/group coordinators must register at the CRSP registration area.
  • ORIENTATION:  After registration, visitors may then proceed to the holding area for the orientation.
  • TOUR: The guided tour will start after the orientation.
  • WRAP UP:  Visitors are requested to fill out the feedback forms and submit the accomplished forms before exiting the CRSP grounds.

As far as results and impact of the MMDA Children’s Road Safety Park are concerned, the park has been  successful in educating the children and public on the value of road safety and traffic discipline, which is MMDA’s ultimate objective.