MMDA clears Edsa of 19 billboards

MANILA, Philippines—Motorists can look forward to seeing more of the sky while driving on Edsa in the next few days as the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) launched Wednesday a crackdown on the gigantic billboards displayed on the major thoroughfare.

MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino kicked off “Operation Rolldown, Baby” by inspecting several of the roughly 2,000 advertisements on the 23-kilometer-long road.

Those that were found to be in violation of the national building code were immediately taken down although the steel frames holding the advertisements were left intact.

“For so long a time, some of our outdoor billboard operators have aerially cluttered and visually polluted our urban landscape with impunity. It’s about time to take action for our environment and public safety,” Tolentino said.

In Wednesday’s operation, MMDA personnel removed 19 billboards in Makati, Pasay and the Balintawak area in Quezon City.

Three of the advertisements were located near the MMDA office on Orense Street in Guadalupe, Makati.

MMDA Traffic Engineering Director Neomie Recio said they initially encountered some resistance from the owners of private lots in Balintawak where some of the billboards were mounted. They relented, however, after a dialogue with Tolentino.

Under the MMDA campaign, billboards found to be in violation of the national building code would be taken down but the frames holding the ads would be left standing. A notice would then be sent to the advertising firm in charge of the billboard through the Outdoor Advertising Association of the Philippines.

“Within 15 days, the erring company should initiate remediation,” Tolentino said.

Should the firm concerned fail to do so, the structural frame holding the billboard will then be torn down.

“If they won’t remove it, we will,” the MMDA chairman warned.

According to the MMDA, among the most common violations discovered in Wednesday’s operations were noncompliance with the provisions on the required distance between a billboard and the start of the property line, distance between two billboards and height limit.

“Even with [just] one violation out of the 32 points in the checklist, that would be a basis for the billboard to be taken down,” Tolentino said.