BAGUIO CITY — To address the city’s growing traffic concerns, Baguio has introduced a new solution—the Baguio in My Pocket (BIMP) app. The app is free and readily available to all residents and non-residents. It can be easily downloaded from the official website of Baguio: https://baguioinmypocket.ph/ where guides and manuals on how to use the app are also available. The app requires an internet connection and is not available offline.
“For far too long, the city has relied on analog methods where enforcers manually direct vehicles. The limitations of this approach are becoming increasingly apparent. It’s time to explore how we can leverage smart technology to create a more efficient, responsive, and sustainable traffic management system” said Mr. Daryll T. Longid, Chief of the Public Order and Safety Division.
The BIMP app is designed to address the city’s traffic challenges, including congestion in the Central Business District, underutilized alternative roads, traffic disruptions from road closures and construction, inefficient traffic signal systems, an unstructured public transport system, and unoptimized parking spaces.
The app aims to make Baguio’s roads smarter by providing essential tools for both residents and visitors. With a variety of key features, the app focuses on live traffic monitoring, alternative routes, public transport tracking, parking management, and community reports. These tools are designed to improve traffic flow and provide helpful information to users, especially during peak seasons when the city sees heavy traffic due to tourism.
One of the main features of the BIMP app is live traffic monitoring through multiple CCTV feeds. Users can toggle between a grid or list view for multiple camera feeds, which provide real-time traffic status indicators and location-specific traffic tips and landmarks. This feature helps users avoid areas with heavy traffic, particularly during peak tourist seasons.
The app also includes alternative routes features that provide users with estimated travel times and distances, road condition updates, best time recommendations, and dynamic route adjustments. These features are helpful not only for visitors but also for residents who want to know the real-time conditions on the ground.
For public transportation, the app offers public transport tracking, which includes live jeepney location tracking, real-time arrival predictions, occupancy status updates, route visualization on the map, nearby stops information, service alerts and updates, and wait time estimates. This is a valuable tool for commuters who rely on public transportation for their daily travel.
Another important feature is parking lot monitoring, which provides real-time parking spot availability, dynamic pricing information, peak hour alerts, occupancy trends, and navigation to parking areas. The city encourages private parking facilities to enroll and update their systems so that users can get accurate information about available parking spaces. As of now, there are 2,073 private-operated parking spaces and 538 government-operated parking spaces in Baguio.
The app also includes community reporting functions, which allow users to report incidents in real time by uploading photos, categorizing reports, and receiving status updates. The app features an upvoting/downvoting system, comment functionality, and location-based filtering. This allows the community to actively contribute to managing traffic and helps the command center monitor traffic incidents efficiently. “This actually helps our command center kasi nakikita nila lahat yung iniinput niyo (community) doon. It’s a community involvement, malaki po ang magiging tulong niyan sa pagmamanage natin ng traffic,” said Mr. Longid.
Josh Bartolome, a resident of Baguio, shared his thoughts on the app, saying, “Sa wakas, isang tech na talagang may silbi sa araw-araw! Real-time traffic updates at parking finder? Ang laking ginhawa nito para sa lahat ng bumabiyahe sa Baguio.”
Fellow Baguio resident Rolly Cruz also agreed, stating, “Malaking tulong ‘to lalo na sa mga hindi taga-Baguio. At least may guide na kung saan mas okay dumaan hindi na masasayang ang oras.”
The development of the app is overseen by the Management Information and Technology Division (MITD), led by Mr. Francis Camarao. According to Mr. Daryll T. Longid, Chief of the Public Order and Safety Division, the MITD team has already begun working on several components.
“Those are things we can already accomplish with the technology we have. Systems and program development are well within the capabilities of our highly skilled MITD team, led by Mr. Camarao. What we need to procure are hardware components, such as updated and modern traffic light systems, including CCTV systems,” Longid explained.
As technology continues to advance, Baguio’s future traffic plans aim to incorporate innovative solutions, including live parking slot reservations, a scheduled transportation system, a fully AI-controlled traffic light system, real-time map routing similar to Google Maps, and designated loading and unloading areas.
The BIMP app is a key part of Baguio’s commitment to improving its traffic system and creating a smarter, more organized approach to managing city streets. By leveraging real-time data and modern technology, Baguio is taking an important step toward a more efficient, sustainable, and community-driven traffic management system. By Annjay Domilies
