Anyone who travels along Metro Manila roads will be well familiar with the sight of loose wires dangling from overhead power lines and wooden poles overloaded with cables doing their best Leaning Tower of Pisa impression.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and the Metro Manila Council are now planning to do more to get on top of the issue.

These dangling wires and spaghetti cables are not only unsightly but also dangerous, as anyone traveling on two wheels will be able to tell you. Nothing livens up a cycling trip more than being smacked in the face by a power cable hanging in your path.

MMDA and MMC are now calling on local government units to pass an ordinance that would regulate and oversee the installation and maintenance of distribution lines—something you’d think would already be in place.

MMDA boss Don Artes recently mentioned a case of a power pole falling over and blocking traffic. He also talked about the challenges in addressing the issue, and that Meralco officials told him that they have a tricky task on their hands identifying which cables are operational and which ones are not.

Just ripping everything down would lead to complaints from residents who suddenly find themselves sitting in the dark.

The agency is currently running an information drive ahead of the cleanup operation that is due to take place under MMDA Resolution 24-16 Series of 2024. That way, at least residents will get some warning before any potential power cuts.

The resolution states that “this long-standing malady needs to be immediately addressed and remedied as a measure of efficient and effective governance for the promotion of the general welfare of the people”—a statement few people will disagree with.

LGUs also have the power to set their own ordinances on the matter, and some have already done so. San Juan City, for example, has been enforcing City Ordinance No. 65 (or the “Anti-Dangling Wire Task Force Ordinance”) since 2020.

As so often with issues in this metropolis, they only really get addressed with the required vigor when problems become big enough or hit the media. In this case, it’s good to see that authorities are trying to get on top of things and make the roads safer for all of us.