Cashless payment only, motorists using NLEx told

Around 100 truckers from Central Luzon on Friday morning barricaded a portion of Anda Circle leading to Bonifacio Drive in Manila—an area close to the port—in a lightning rally protesting the increased toll rates on the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx).

BOCAUE, Bulacan, Philippines — The over 400,000 motorists expected to head to the provinces in northern and Central Luzon starting on Tuesday for the All Souls’ Day and All Saints’ Day holidays are now required to go cashless when passing through the tollways of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx).

The cashless collections dry run, done in accordance with the directive of the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), began in batches since last month. On Monday, NLEx personnel were still installing the Easytrip Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) stickers to non-RFID vehicles going through the toll plazas of the NLEx-Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx).

According to TRB, motorists who had no RFID stickers were directed to a safe place where they could pay the toll fees in cash before they were asked to secure their RFID stickers.

Tollway-operated expressways were earlier ordered by TRB to undergo training for an all-RFID toll collection system on selected tollgates, where RFID stickers bought by motorists and attached to the vehicles need only be scanned for the toll fee.

So far, the tollways that went through the training for the cashless collection system were the following:

According to TRB, nonparticipating toll plazas would continue to collect toll through both RFID and cash lanes.

—CARMELA REYES-ESTROPE

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