The Joint Task Force COVID Shield on Tuesday warned private vehicle owners against turning bicycle lanes into parking spaces or using it to avoid traffic jams.

Police Lt. General Guillermo Eleazar, JTF commander. said it does not only disrespect the bicycle riders but also put their lives at risk.

The task force is coordinating with the Highway Patrol Group (HPG) and local police commanders in clearing designated bicycle lanes, especially in some of the busy streets in Metro Manila.

“The keyword here is respect. Just like drivers of trucks, buses and private vehicles, bicycle riders also have the right to use the roads especially if they are already allowed to go through bicycle lanes that have already been designated by the local government units,” said Eleazar.

He said they were prompted to take action on the matter following the complaint of some bicycle riders about how private vehicles invade the bicycle lanes by using these as parking spaces or to overtake another vehicle and avoid traffic jams.

Eleazar said the HPG and local commanders should include in their regular patrol checking of bicycle lanes to ensure these are not only used as parking spaces or be used by private and public utility cars.

According to HPG, twenty-one vehicle drivers were given Temporary Operating Permit (TOP) for illegal parking on bike lanes along service road of Quezon Avenue near EDSA.

Some videos have been posted in social media and bicycle riders have been urging the government to do something about it.

He added that coordination should also be made to place the ideal barrier to protect bicycle lanes from vehicles.

Eleazar said with bicycle lanes used as parking spaces, bicycle riders are forced to shift to other lanes which put them at risk of being hit by vehicles tailing them.

“The use of bicycles as a mode of transportation is already beginning to become popular. We call on the motorists to get used to this by starting to respect the intended users of bicycle lanes,” Eleazar said.

Several LGUs have designated bicycle lanes such as Quezon City, Pasig City and Taguig City.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is also planning to designate a bicycle lane along EDSA.

“The national government, through the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, supports the use of bicycles as an alternative mode of transportation,” he said.

“This is the reason we welcome the decision of the LGUs to designate bicycle lanes in their areas of responsibility,” Eleazar added. Ella Dionisio/DMS