The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has started a weeklong dry run of its new yellow lane traffic scheme on Elliptical Road in Quezon City, aimed at easing congestion in the area due to the ongoing Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 7 construction.
Under the new policy, vehicles on the yellow lanes marked by solid lines are prohibited from swerving, changing lanes or overtaking.
MMDA traffic chief Bong Nebrija said the new scheme was meant to make drivers stay in their lanes as the MRT 7 contractor, EEI Corp., would soon need to shut down parts of the road to prepare for tunneling.
“If you drive along that area, you’ll see that a lot of motorists like to suddenly change lanes especially near Quezon City Hall and North Avenue,” he added. “The yellow lanes are meant to funnel in the vehicles so they would be forced to follow the curve.”
The dry-run will end on Monday. Should the MMDA decide to enforce the new traffic scheme strictly, violators would be fined P650.
MMDA data showed that around 200,000 vehicles pass through the 2-km road.
Two weeks ago, the MMDA fined EEI Corp. P25,000 after the firm took over two of the lanes without first notifying the agency. The unexpected closure caused heavy traffic on Commonwealth Avenue.