After the pedestrian lane blocked by railings on its end in Tayuman Street in Sampaloc, Manila earned criticism last week, an individual noticed that the obstruction has been removed.
READ: ‘Hurdle race?’ Pedestrian lane blocked by railings irks commuters
A photo shared by a Facebook user on Thursday, September 22 showed that the controversial pedestrian lane is no longer blocked by railings.
On Wednesday, a photo of the road also circulated online where only a small portion of the railing was removed.
However, an online user spotted that the pedestrian crossing sign and electric power pole is still blocking the way of pedestrians using the crosswalk.
Metropolitan Manila Development Authority has yet to respond if they will also remove these obstructions.
Online users celebrated the removal of the railings and found social media an effective way to prompt action from officials.
“The power of social media and protest together,” a Facebook user said.
“The power of social media, effective talaga ang mangalampag HAHAHA,” an online user wrote.
“The benefits of our reklamo,” a Facebook user said.
Another saw this as a form of “participatory governance.”
Other public transportation facilities such as the narrow sidewalk along Shaw Boulevard and the elevated footbridge along EDSA-Kamuning also recently made headlines.
The footbridge in Blumentritt that seemingly turned into a “waterfall” due to torrential rain and the footbridge without hand railings and large gap on the ramp in Manila also earned public attention.
