Bar exams traffic, transport advisory

MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court released the traffic and transport plans for the Bar examinations to be held in the next 4 Sundays, starting this Sunday, October 6.

A traffic advisory for the area in and around the University of Santo Tomas (UST) – venue for the examinations – and a transportation contingency plan were released by the office of Atty Ma Cristina Layusa, the Deputy Clerk of Court and Bar Confidant.

Sidewalks around the UST campus will be closely monitored and pedestrian traffic controlled. The police will disperse groups of people at these sidewalks, according to the memo. If needed, these will be closed to pedestrians.

The pedestrian overpass in front of UST’s gate 3, crossing España Boulevard, will be exclusively for Bar examinees and personnel, and will be guarded by police, security guards, and barangay officials.

The streets around the campus – España, P. Noval and Lacson Streets – shall be open to traffic at all times, while the stretch of Dapitan Street from P. Noval to Lacson shall be closed between 10:30 am and 1 pm, during the lunch breaks of the examinees.

Drop-off points

Vehicular traffic and parking within the campus itself will be closely monitored and limited. There will be designated drop-off points for buses and private vehicles carrying the examinees, before UST Gates 2, 3, and 4.

Only authorized vehicles shall be allowed to enter the campus during examination time.

The public who will need to go to the UST Hospital and the Santissimo Rosario Parish church, both inside campus, can only enter and exit the campus at the following designated gates:

• People going to/coming from USTH shall use only Gate 14 (at Lacson Street); it will be for their exclusive use
• Parking for vehicles from USTH shall be limited to the covered parking infront of the hospital
• People going to the Santissimo Rosario Parish should enter through Gate 7 (at P Noval); vehicles going to the church can enter Gate 5 (at España) but must exit at Gate 7 (P Noval)
• Parking spaces for churchgoers will be limited to the area infront of the church

Shuttle buses during heavy rain

The SC also released contingency plans in case of heavy rain and flooding on the examination dates.

When there is heavy rain on exam day, the SC and the Court of Appeals will deploy buses to transport examinees and duty personnel to the UST campus from several pick-up points in the Metro.

• Quezon City Memorial Circle (2 buses) 
• Park and Ride on Lawton, Manila (2 buses) 
• Supreme Court Compound, Taft Avenue (2 buses) 
• Coastal Mall Terminal, Parañaque City (2 buses) 
• Greenbelt and Glorietta, Ayala Center, Makati (2 buses) 
• Marikina Sports Complex (1 bus)

To ride the buses, the examinees and personnel should present their Notice of Admission, Gate Pass or ID to the driver.

The SC plan stated: “The SC and CA shuttle buses shall be stationed at these areas as early as 5:00 a.m. and will leave at EXACTLY 6:00 a.m. There will be no available buses after 6:00 a.m. Further postings shall be made if more buses will be available.”

Flooding contingency

In case of flooding inside the UST campus, the SC will also deploy commuter vans to ferry examinees and personnel from the campus gates to the examination venues.

The vans will also be in service if flooding persists at the end of the exam day.

The shuttle buses will also be available to drop off examinees if the flooding and rain persist. They will be dropped off at the following points:

• QC Memorial Circle for northbound passengers
• Park and Ride, Lawton; SC premises; and the Coastal Mall Terminal in Parañaque for southbound passengers
• Ayala Center and Greenbelt for those going home in the Makati Area
• Marikina Sports Complex for those going to the Marikina area

The SC will release additional information if more buses become available.

Earlier, the City of Manila released a memo banning beer and liquor at the university during the Bar examination period.

The Bar examination will be held on October 6, 13, 20, and 27. – Rappler.com