MMDA. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Malls in Metro Manila are set to adjust their operating hours starting November 13 in keeping with the annual scheme to ease traffic congestion during the Christmas season.
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said Friday that malls will open at 11 a.m. and close at 11 p.m. from November 13 up to January 8, 2024.
“Gusto rin naming i-stretch ‘yung oras ng mga malls, para may option ‘yung ating mga kababayan na kung gusto magpagabi, ma-spreadout natin ‘yung [mga] sasakyan [sa kalsada] sa mas mahabang oras,” MMDA acting chairperson Don Artes said in a press conference.
(We also want to stretch the hours of the malls so that our citizens have the option that if they want to stay late, we can spread out [the] cars [on the road] for a longer time.)
READ: Holiday season highlights, worsens already woeful Metro transport system
The MMDA said that the mall delivery schedule will also be adjusted during the period. It will only be allowed from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. from November 13 until January 8, 2024, but delivery of perishable goods is excluded under this scheme.
Artes said mall operators must submit traffic management plans two weeks before any mall-wide sales or promotional events.
Mall-wide sales and events will only be allowed during weekends, he added.
READ: Metro transport woes worsen as Christmas nears
“Para ma-augment namin [ang traffic management], ito po ay para po masiguro na ‘yun pong mga events na ‘yan at mga sales ay hindi pagmumulan o magiging sanhi ng traffic,” said Artes.
(For us to augment [traffic management], this is to ensure that those events and sales will not become the source or cause of traffic.)
Artes, however, clarified that individual stores or outlets may still hold their sales on weekdays, provided that no public announcements have been made or no advertisements are placed outside the mall.
READ: 10% heavier traffic ahead: Christmas rush to choke Metro Manila – MMDA
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