WITH the Asean integration just around the corner, I am left to wonder whether the Philippines is really ready for a sudden burst in urban density.
Global urbanization has been in high gear since the past decade, and most of the world’s major cities—including some key areas in Metro Manila—are finding it hard to keep up with the demand the situation has posed. We all know a story or two about how Metro Manila’s vehicular traffic situation has progressed from bad to worse, and how flooding—even after only mere minutes after a sudden downpour—has become more rampant than ever. The once proud, low-density Metro Manila is slowly strangling life out of its cities—even if private developers have already resorted to vertical urbanism—and if proper authorities and institutions don’t take action soon, we all can expect only the worse of things to come. Typhoon Ondoy, which wreaked havoc five years ago, only showed the entire world how helpless Metro Manila is in the face of disaster. That’s the same thing that happened after Supertyphoon Yolanda ravaged parts of the Visayas last year and, just recently, Typhoon Glenda also in Metro Manila.
With all these things highlighting the unpleasant state of urban development the Philippines is facing a few months before the Asean integration officially takes effect (which will bring in more developers, more foreign consumers looking to own properties within strategic, high-density areas), it has become clearer and clearer that the road map for urban progress now lies in proper urban density management.
Here’s an interesting analogy: urban density is a lot like Internet speeds. If you don’t have a good infrastructure supporting it, there’s only so much you can do to address the problem.
Urban density should not be synonymous with urban congestion. What we’re experiencing now, I believe, is a direct portrayal of poor urban planning that has been resulting in urban congestion.
Statistics from the United Nations show that more than half of the world’s population is living within urban areas. It’s not at all surprising since integrated developments and central business districts are being built round-the-clock worldwide. Here in Metro Manila alone, there are already more than 20 megadevelopments that are simultaneously dotting the skyline.
Unfortunately, nothing is being done to address the problem (human and vehicular traffic, among many things) in an efficient, streamlined manner. These developments are being managed and attended to separately by developers themselves, and there appears to be no cohesive action on how these infrastructures will help Metro Manila, as an entire district, address the problem of urban density management.
It always boils down to proper urban planning.
One example of a microcity that has continued to fail miserably in managing urban density is Bonifacio Global City (BGC).
BGC—with all its mighty skyscrapers, sprawling open spaces, and a host of retail, business and residential establishments—is architecturally designed for density. From a public-utility standpoint, BGC can handle density without difficulty. From a digital standpoint, it also seems capable of handling density. However, from a public-transportation standpoint, BGC doesn’t seem to be addressing the issue of density quite so well. The Philippines is unique in that the building of cities is predominantly a matter for private industries, but at a certain point, one has to look at the infrastructure investments made by private companies as they shoot for density and ask, “Is it enough?”
As I mentioned in a recent column, we all know that BGC continues to disappoint citygoers because of its limited capability to address urban density. BGC screwed up because it did not have a sound master planning. The people who designed it made it a car-only city. Instead of playing the proximity game where everything is close by, they should have invested in better intercity mass-transportation options. In BGC’s case, the line between being dense and overcrowded is quite shadowy. The line between being dense and overcrowded is as hotly contested as the ownership of Fort Bonifacio.
The right way to go about the problem of urban density is, first and foremost, by championing efficient urban planning. If done correctly for the long term, urban planning will not only help ease the burden of the worsening traffic and flooding conditions in Metro Manila. It will also help nurture a peaceful and orderly community that becomes more conducive for various businesses, and interests to co-exist.