MANILA, Philippines—Traffic enforcers of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will no longer need ballpens or booklets as the agency begins automating the issuance of citation tickets to violators.

Angelito Vergel De Dios, the Traffic Operations Center executive director, said the first 30 portable ticket machines, which cost about P80,000 each, have been set for delivery within January. These will replace the current booklets of traffic violation receipt (TVR).

With the device working like a cash register, he said the traffic enforcer would only have to key in the type of violation committed for the machine to turn out the appropriate ticket.

He added that the mobile ticketing program would hasten the process of citation, as well as verification.

"One big advantage with this is the traffic enforcer will no longer have to call Metrobase to determine if the apprehended driver has previous unsettled violations. He will just have to swipe the driver's license to his ticket machine and he will get the information he needed," said the official in a statement.

Metrobase is the MMDA's central traffic monitoring center located at the agency's main office in Makati City.

The technology, stressed Vergel de Dios, would prevent the traffic enforcer from withdrawing an issued TVR in exchange for grease money or make "corrections" on the issued TVR.

"What we want to do is here is to minimize contact between the traffic enforcer and the motorist, and prevent them from making any kind of under-the-table transaction. We can prevent abuse and corruption because as soon as the traffic enforcer inputs the violation to his machine, he can no longer take it back, the machine automatically records it," he said.

The portable ticketing machine would also be equipped with a Radio Frequency Identification Device (RFID) reader, he added.

The RFID is a microchip that the MMDA installs on passenger buses along Edsa to track and monitor their movement, under the Organized Bus Route scheme.

MMDA chair Bayani Fernando earlier said that metro residents should expect traffic on the 24-kilometer highway to ease further with the full implementation of the organized bus route in 2009.

About 3,000 buses ply Edsa every day, making an estimated 32,000 trips daily.