Navotas City implements own truck ban

Navotas City has implemented a truck ban starting this month as part of measures to ease congestion following the closure of some of the city’s roads for rehabilitation.

Mayor John Reynald Tiangco recently issued Executive Order 8, Series of 2013, which specified the routes heavy trucks should take at certain times of the day.

Vehicles affected by the order were cargo trucks, gravel and sand trucks, tractor trailers and containerized haulers with a gross capacity weight of over 4,500 kilograms.

Under the new regulation, they are prohibited from traveling or passing through “any street in the City of Navotas with no more than two lanes from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The ban is in effect on weekdays but not during holidays. In addition, it does not cover cargo trucks carrying perishable and agricultural cargo. Violators face a fine of P500.

The order was issued on Sept. 23 and took effect Tuesday.

Tiangco said that the construction and rehabilitation of several streets in the city by the Department of Public Works and Highways had resulted in heavy traffic during rush hour.

Navotas, with an area of just 10.8 square kilometers, is the third-smallest local government and the second-smallest city in Metro Manila. Most of the major roads in the city, such as M. Naval and Gov. A. Pascual Streets, have only two to four lanes.—Nathaniel R. Melican