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Commonwealth Avenue (Quezon City)

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Coordinates: 14°39′22″N 121°3′22″E / 14.65611°N 121.05611°E / 14.65611; 121.05611
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R-7
Commonwealth Avenue
Don Mariano Marcos Avenue
Map of Commonwealth Avenue in Metro Manila
Commonwealth Avenue at Tandang Sora Intersection.jpg
Commonwealth Avenue at Tandang Sora Intersection in November 2023, viewed from the Luzon Avenue Flyover
Route information
Length12.712 km (7.899 mi)
Existed1960s–present
Component
highways
Major junctions
South end N170 (Elliptical Road)
Major intersections
North end N129 (Quirino Highway)
Location
CountryPhilippines
Major citiesQuezon City
Highway system
  • Roads in the Philippines

Commonwealth Avenue, formerly known as Don Mariano Marcos Avenue,[a] is a 12.4-kilometer (7.7 mi) highway located in Quezon City, Philippines. It spans six to eighteen lanes, making it the widest road in the country.[2] The avenue is one of the major roads in Metro Manila and is designated as part of Radial Road 7 (R-7) of the older Manila arterial road system and National Route 170 (N170) of the Philippine highway network.

Commonwealth Avenue starts at Elliptical Road, which encircles the Quezon Memorial Circle. It passes through the areas of Philcoa, Tandang Sora, Balara, Batasan Hills, and Fairview and ends at Quirino Highway in the Novaliches area.

Being located in Quezon City, which is among several cities in Metro Manila with a high incidence of road accidents, the avenue has a high accident rate, particularly due to overspeeding, earning it the nickname "Killer Highway".[3] A speed limit of 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph) is being enforced to reduce accidents on the avenue.[4]

Route description

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Commonwealth Avenue follows a curving route from Elliptical Road to Quirino Highway. It is divided into two portions: the eighteen-lane main segment, formerly Don Mariano Marcos Avenue, and the six-to-eight-lane Fairview Avenue. The Fairview Rotonda, a roundabout at the intersection with Doña Carmen Street at the barangay boundary of Commonwealth and Fairview, marks the division between the two segments.

The main segment, formerly Don Mariano Marcos Avenue (after Mariano Marcos, the father of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.), stretches south of Fairview Rotonda. It features partial access control with interchanges and U-turn slots replacing at-grade intersections and pedestrian crossings placed on overpasses (footbridges). This segment has 18 lanes, with nine lanes per direction, excluding dedicated lanes for motorcycles, buses, jeepneys, and bicycles. An exclusive motorcycle lane, implemented in March 2023, restricts motorcycles to the third lane except when entering or exiting the highway.[5]

On the other hand, Fairview Avenue, north of Fairview Rotonda, has 6 to 8 lanes, and most intersections are at-grade, usually with traffic lights.

Being located in Quezon City, which has a high number of road accidents, Commonwealth Avenue has a high incidence of accidents along with Quezon Avenue.[6] The number of accidents on the avenue has lent it its nickname, the "Killer Highway".[7]

Bicycle lanes

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See also: Cycling in the Philippines
Cyclists using the bike lane along Commonwealth Avenue

The outermost lanes of Commonwealth Avenue from Quezon Memorial Circle to Doña Carmen Avenue are designated as bi-directional bike lanes with plastic barriers and 0.6-meter (2.0 ft) buffer zones on both sides as part of Quezon City's bike lane network.[8][9] A portion of the bike lane also uses concrete plant boxes instead of plastic barriers, with the city planning to replace plastic barriers with plant boxes.[10]

Before the establishment of the city bike lane network during the COVID-19 pandemic, a bi-directional grade-separated bike lane was established by the MMDA in 2012 along a 2.92-kilometer (1.81 mi) segment of the highway from University Avenue to Tandang Sora.[11][12]

MRT Line 7

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Further information: MRT Line 7

The Metro Rail Transit Line 7 (MRT 7), which will connect with the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 at North Triangle Common Station, began construction in 2016.[13] Most of its alignment will follow the center island of Commonwealth Avenue up to Regalado Highway.

History

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Commonwealth Avenue in Tandang Sora in 2008, prior to the construction of the Commonwealth Avenue–C-5 flyover

The avenue's origins can be traced back to a segment of a road that connected the proposed site of the National Capitol in what is now Elliptical Road to the University of the Philippines Diliman campus and comprises what is now University Avenue.[14][15] The original 1941 Frost Plan envisioned a road network connecting the proposed Capitol to the proposed Philippine Military Academy (PMA) through barrio Balara. However, by 1949, the revised Frost Plan shifted focus to constructing a road directly connecting Quezon Memorial Circle, which replaced the original Capitol site that was scrapped after World War II, to the new National Government Center (location of the present-day Batasang Pambansa Complex) at Constitution Hill, which replaced the proposed PMA site.

Originally named Don Mariano Marcos Avenue, the avenue was eventually constructed in the late 1960s as a two-lane highway.[16] Quezon City was then the capital of the Philippines, and embassies were to be put up on the stretch of highway. Because the country's capital was moved back to Manila in 1976, other establishments were put up instead. Don Mariano Marcos Avenue was later renamed into two parts, Commonwealth Avenue and Quezon Avenue. Later, Commonwealth Avenue regained the eight-lane Fairview Avenue, which used to end near Jordan Plains Subdivision in Novaliches.

In the 1980s, the road was widened into a six-lane highway. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the avenue was prone to heavy traffic and accidents due to increasing public utility vehicles plying the highway and sidewalk vendors crowding onto the road. In the late 2000s, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) cleared the sidewalk vendors, especially in the Tandang Sora area, which was prone to heavy rush hour traffic. Fairview Avenue uses stoplights and center island splittings at its intersections, while Don Mariano Marcos Avenue uses interchanges at its intersections.

The avenue is 18 lanes at its widest. It is the widest road in the Philippines, beating the old record set by EDSA.[2]

Linking to Quirino Highway

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On October 1, 2009, Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. announced his 15-year-old plan to link Commonwealth Avenue and Quirino Highway at a cost of ₱20 million to ₱140 million, adjacent to the Zabarte Road.[17] The project was completed in May 2011 and is already operational.[when?]

Speed limit implementation

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In May 2011, a 60-kilometer-per-hour (37 mph) speed limit was implemented on Commonwealth Avenue following the death of Lourdes Estella-Simbulan, a journalist, in a road accident on the avenue. During the first week of its implementation, 120 violators were apprehended after speeds of over 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph) were recorded through speed guns.[18]

Renaming proposals

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During the 16th Congress, Representatives Miro Quimbo (Marikina–2nd) and Erlinda Santiago (SAGIP Partylist) filed separate House bills to rename the avenue into Eraño G. Manalo Avenue, after Eraño Manalo, the second Executive Minister of the Iglesia ni Cristo, which has a central temple along the avenue.[19][20] Meanwhile, the Makabayan bloc wanted to rename the avenue after former Filipino senator Lorenzo Tañada.[1]

Intersections

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The entire route is located in Quezon City. The list includes the section of the avenue named "Fairview Avenue". Kilometers are measured from Rizal Park, the Kilometer Zero. 

km[21][22]miDestinationsNotes
12.4917.762 N170 (Elliptical Road)Quezon Memorial Circle, southern terminus. Continues to Manila as Quezon Avenue.
Masaya StreetAccessible from southbound lanes via U-turn slot. Access to U.P. Village, Teachers Village and Kalayaan Avenue.
12.879–
13.051		8.003–
8.110		 N175 (University Avenue)Accessible from southbound lanes via U-turn slot. Access to University of the Philippines Diliman.
Central AvenueAccessible from northbound lanes via U-turn slot. Access to New Era University and Iglesia Ni Cristo Central Temple
Tandang Sora AvenueRight turns only. Flyover closed due to MRT Line 7 construction.
N129 (Luzon Avenue/C-5 Road)Access to Luzon Avenue residential areas.
Zuzuarregui StreetSouthern segment has access to Broadcast City
Holy Spirit Street, Capitol Homes DriveHoly Spirit Street intersection accessible from northbound lanes via U-turn slot. Capitol Homes Drive intersection accessible from southbound lanes via U-turn slot. Access to Ever Gotesco Commonwealth.
IBP RoadAccessible from southbound lanes via U-turn slot. Access to Batasang Pambansa on both ends. Access to Payatas Road and the municipality of Rodriguez (Montalban) at the northern end.
20.382–
20.682		12.665–
12.851		Doña Carmen StreetRoundabout. Access to Don Jose Heights. Name change from Commonwealth Avenue to Fairview Avenue. Change from 18-lane road to 6-lane road.
22.04113.696Regalado AvenueTraffic light intersection
23.24214.442Regalado HighwayTraffic light intersection. No left turns from southbound lanes. Access to SM City Fairview.
Mindanao AvenueTraffic light intersection
25.20315.660 N127 (Quirino Highway)Northern terminus.
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Notes

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  1. ^ Named after the father of President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., Mariano Marcos.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Should Commonwealth be renamed Eraño Manalo Ave?". Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Rey, Aika (December 23, 2015). "5 iconic roads in the Philippines". Rappler. Archived from the original on October 7, 2022. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  3. ^ Cayabyab, Marc Jayson (February 21, 2020). "C-5 Metro Manila's deadliest road – MMDA". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on February 6, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021. Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon city, tagged as "killer highway," came in second with 23 fatal road crashes, up from 10 deaths in 2018 and 17 in 2017.
  4. ^ "MMDA Expands Coverage of 60-kph Speed Limit on Commonwealth Avenue". Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. February 26, 2013. Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  5. ^ Galvez, Daphne (March 29, 2023). "MMDA: 2,302 drivers breached exclusive motorcycle lane along Commonwealth Ave in two days". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  6. ^ "QC, Manila, Makati record most road crashes - MMDA". Rappler. February 7, 2017. Archived from the original on May 24, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  7. ^ Abelgas, Gus (December 20, 2010). "Commonwealth Avenue a 'killer highway': police". ABS-CBN News. Archived from the original on May 15, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  8. ^ Aguja, Argie (June 17, 2020). "Quezon City to set up bike lanes along Commonwealth Avenue". Wheels.ph. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  9. ^ Mangubat, Lio (January 8, 2021). "Quezon City bike lanes, explained". Spin.ph. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  10. ^ "Concrete Plant Box Barrier Installation". Quezon City Government. April 11, 2022. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  11. ^ Baluyot, Juju (February 4, 2016). "FIRST PERSON: When I tried biking around Quezon City". GMA Integrated News and Public Affairs. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  12. ^ "MMDA opens bike lane along Commonwealth". The Philippine Star. December 4, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
  13. ^ "Construction of the MRT Line 7 begins". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. April 20, 2016. Archived from the original on April 20, 2019. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  14. ^ "From Grassland to Metropolis: Evolution of Makati CBD" (PDF). Management Association of the Philippines. October 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  15. ^ Manila, Philippines map (Map). American Red Cross Service Bureau. August 1945. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  16. ^ Bueza, Michael (October 12, 2014). "What Quezon City could have looked like". Rappler. Archived from the original on February 28, 2022. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "Manila Bulletin Online". Archived from the original on August 22, 2010. Retrieved October 2, 2009.
  18. ^ "Task group apprehends 120 speedsters in 6 days". Philippine Daily Inquirer. May 23, 2011. Archived from the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  19. ^ House Bill No. 3673 (January 13, 2014), An Act Renaming the Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City Metro Manila into Eraño G. Manalo Avenue, Senate of the Philippines Legislative Digital Resources, retrieved June 4, 2024
  20. ^ House Bill No. 908 (July 2, 2013), An Act Renaming the Commonwealth/Don Mariano Marcos Avenue in Quezon City Metro Manila Into Eraño G. Manalo Avenue, Senate of the Philippines Legislative Digital Resources, retrieved June 4, 2024
  21. ^ "Quezon City 1st". 2016 DPWH Road Data. Department of Public Works and Highways. Archived from the original on November 30, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  22. ^ "Quezon City 2nd". 2016 DPWH Road Data. Department of Public Works and Highways. Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Commonwealth Avenue (Quezon City).

14°39′22″N 121°3′22″E / 14.65611°N 121.05611°E / 14.65611; 121.05611

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