Taft Avenue


Taft Avenue is a major road in the south of Metro Manila. It passes through three cities in the metropolis: Manila, Pasay and Parañaque. The road was named after the former Governor-General of the Philippines and U.S. President, William Howard Taft; the Philippines was a former commonwealth territory of the United States in the first half of the twentieth century. The avenue is a component of National Route 170, a secondary road in the Philippine highway network, and anchors R-2 of the Manila arterial road network. It was previously designated as N1 in the old route numbering system.

Route description

From the north, Taft Avenue starts at the intersection with Padre Burgos Avenue in Ermita. It then crosses the Ayala Boulevard and Finance Street and forms the eastern edge of Rizal Park up to Kalaw Avenue. It then crosses United Nations Avenue, Padre Faura Street, Pedro Gil Street, where it also crosses the district boundary with Malate, San Andres Street and Quirino Avenue, and Pablo Ocampo Street before entering the City of Pasay. In Pasay, it crosses Gil Puyat Avenue, Arnaiz Avenue, and Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, where the intersection is known as Pasay Rotonda. The avenue then continues south towards Baclaran in Parañaque as Taft Avenue Extension up to its terminus at its intersection with Elpidio Quirino Avenue, Harrison Avenue, and Redemptorist Road.

History

Construction of this avenue, originally called "Calle Rizal", was completed in 1899, with Padre Burgos Avenue as its northern terminus and Calle Herran as its southern terminus. Engineers Manny Aquino and Robin Santos led its extension in 1911, and the avenue was renamed Manila Road. However, a map of Manila produced in 1915 by the Office of Department Engineer, Philippine Department, indicates it was named Taft Avenue. It was extended to Ocampo Street in 1959 and was named 'Ermita-Pasay Boulevard' or Highway 50, and was further extended to P. Lovina Street or Highway 54 Extension where it ends, with the route continuing as Mexico Road. Afterwards, it was renamed Taft Avenue and Mexico Road became Taft Avenue Extension. The Manila Line 1, the first elevated rail track in the Philippines, was built over it and opened in 1984.

Intersections

This is a list of intersections of Taft Avenue. Bold indicates a street crossings.

Ermita, Manila

Rizal Park

One of the three entrances to Rizal Park, the Taft Avenue entrance is also adjacent to the National Museum of Fine Arts and the National Museum of Anthropology, as well as the Statue of the Sentinel of Freedom.

Government buildings

Taft Avenue is home to some government buildings: the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Court of Appeals, Department of Tourism, Bureau of Plant Industry, Philippine General Hospital, National Bureau of Investigation and Times Plaza.

World Health Organization

The office of the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region is located on Taft Avenue, adjacent the Line 1 United Nations station.

University Belt

Taft Avenue forms a part of the University Belt. Universities such as the De La Salle University, College of Saint Benilde, University of the Philippines Manila, Philippine Christian University, Philippine Women's University and the Philippine Normal University are located on Taft Avenue. The Santa Isabel College Manila, Emilio Aguinaldo College, Araullo High School and the Manila Science High School also face the road directly, while Adamson University has direct walkway access from the road.

National Cathedral of the Philippine Independent Church

The National Cathedral of the Holy Child of the Philippine Independent Church is located on Taft Avenue.

Transportation

Taft Avenue is accessed through jeepneys, taxis, buses, the Manila Line 1, and the Manila Line 3. The avenue houses some Line 1 stations namely: Baclaran station, EDSA, Libertad, Gil Puyat, Vito Cruz, Quirino, Pedro Gil, and United Nations.