07 December 2009

Fewer crimes in ‘Discipline Zone’ of QC

Quezon City authorities said Friday there was a sharp decline in the incidents of lawlessness including petty crimes since the city government turned Commonwealth Avenue into one of the “SB Discipline Zones’’ last year.

Tadeo Palma, secretary to the Quezon City mayor, said “minor misdeeds’’ like snatching dipped by 50 percent since the transformation of the roadway into a discipline zone.

Prior to the road’s conversion, the average weekly crime volume along the troublesome sections of the highway was 50 percent, more than in Aurora Blvd. which averages 27 petty crimes per week.

The sections that used to post high crime rates on Commonwealth Avenue include the areas in Philcoa, Tandang Sora, Luzon Avenue, Old Balara, Don Antonio Heights, Manggahan, Riverside and Litex.

Aside from the dramatic dip in criminality, Palma said the widened Commonwealth Avenue allowed smoother flow of traffic, and improved travel time from Fairview to the Quezon Memorial Circle by more than 30 percent.

By Chito Chavez

Manila Bulletin

December 4, 2009