MMDA To Initiate Mandatory Bus Ban Test On EDSA
MMDA – Once the temporary restraining order is lifted, the MMDA will start another dry run of the bus ban policy in EDSA.
Previously, the agency announced on Twitter that there will be no implementation of the number coding scheme on August 12 (Monday). Hence, vehicles with plates ending with numbers 1 and 2 are allowed to roam the streets of Metro Manila.
The agency further revealed that it will hold the provincial bus ban policy on EDSA once the temporary restraining order (TRO) is lifted.
According to Inquirer, EDSA traffic head Bong Nebrija confirmed the dry run, saying that in case the TRO is lifted, they will have the mandatory dry run, thus, there will be penalty.
Nebrija added that for those who will violate the said policy, they will receive a fine of ₱5,000 for bus operators, and ₱1,000 for bus drivers.
The Quezon City Regional Trial Court were the ones who placed the TRO, preventing the agency from implementing the ban that was meant to reduce traffic congestion on the busiest thoroughfare of Manila. This was is response to a petition filed by bus operators.
Nebrija said that they voluntarily implemented the ban on August 7 (Wednesday) but it failed. He further added that he wanted everyone to participate in the mandatory dry run.
Celine Pialago, the agency’s spokesperson, said that 136 out of 2,736 buses participated in the pilot test of the policy.
As per the report, the bus ban was supported by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s Memorandum Circular No. 2019-31, which states that the buses’ routed are supposed to end at interim terminals on the fringes of the metro.
The ban was also backed up by Metro Manila Council Resolution No. 2019-2, which urges governments to close the bus terminals along EDSA.
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