Roof-tagging scheme for Metro buses to start Aug. 15—MMDA

MANILA, Philippines – The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority will enforce the roof-tagging scheme for buses in Metro Manila starting next month.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino, who met with city bus operators Tuesday, said the agency would implement the scheme on dry-run for one week starting August 15.

“After the week-long run is through, we shall strictly apprehend violators,” he said.

In February, the Metro Manila Council, the policy-making body of the MMDA composed of the Metro Manila mayors, approved a resolution strictly implementing vehicle tagging of all registered and franchised public utility vehicles plying along the major and secondary thoroughfares of Metro Manila.

The scheme was meant to track down colorum and out-of-line PUVs and to enhance the MMDA’s traffic monitoring and surveillance.

However, except for city buses, other PUVs were given in June a reprieve from implementing the vehicle tagging scheme.

Tolentino explained that the decision to defer the enforcement of the scheme for other PUVs was a result of previous consultations and dialogues with various transport groups.

He said provincial bus operators have formally requested for the postponement of the scheme—which has been originally set for implementation on July 25—citing that there is a pending proposal in Congress to utilize an electronic identification system for all PUVs, which might be in conflict with the tagging scheme.

Meanwhile, the MMDA chairman said that various groups of city bus operators have pledged their support for the scheduled implementation of the tagging scheme, especially those units plying major thoroughfare Edsa.

“They believe it would eventually curb the operations of colorum buses,” he added.

“It will facilitate easy tracking and identification of violators because the license plates of the PUVs will be painted prominently on their roofs, making it easy for the closed circuit television cameras to capture images and identify them,” Tolentino said.

To date, the MMDA has 68 operational CCTVs in major thoroughfares, which are monitored and controlled round-the-clock by the agency’s command center in Makati City. The Department of Transportation and Communications has pledged to donate 1,000 sets of CCTVs to the agency.