With millions expected to return to Metro Manila after the Lenten season break, a Quezon City councilor asked concerned local authorities to take steps to ensure order and minimize inconvenience usually associated with the expected huge traffic volume on the streets.

Councilor Jaime Borres of the city’s third district said he will coordinate with Manuel Sabalza of the Quezon City Department of Public Order and Safety (DPOS) to ensure that key city intersections and busy roads are manned by traffic enforcers.

Although a smaller number of travelers reportedly went on vacation this year, Borres said terminals are still expected to be crowded when the vacationers start returning to the city from the provinces.

He said side streets and inner roads should be manned by DPOS personnel as the traffic directing duties on main thoroughfares where bus terminals are usually located are handled by the traffic personnel of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP).

“I expect Monday and Tuesday to be the critical days as the main bulk of returning Holy Week vacationers start crowding the streets. The main exit points and the alternate routes going to Quezon City are expected to be very busy,” Borres said.

Meanwhile, Joselito Cabungcal of the Quezon City Engineering Department (QCED) assured that the city’s roads and the shoulders are well-paved and free from obstructions.

“Before the Holy Week break, I already dispatched field engineering crews in critical areas to ensure the safety of the motorists. For a safer public travel I will again deploy the same field men to allow the unimpeded flow of traffic,’’ Cabungcal said.

With the expected traffic snarls on the roads leading to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and other entry points to the metropolis, Cabungcal said his men have conducted repairs particularly on Commonwealth Avenue and other frequently travelled inner roads in the city.

In the past Lenten season, returning motorists from the north going to the eastern and southern parts of Metro Manila used Commonwealth Avenue to avoid traffic at the Balintawak exit of the NLEX.