MMDA chair Francis Tolentino on Tuesday presents the new color-coded stickers for the Bus Segregation Scheme on Edsa, following the discovery that some bus operators had been faking the stickers under the previous marking system.
MANILA, Philippines–Faking it was apparently as easy as A-B-C.
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Tuesday said several bus operators had been caught faking MMDA stickers under the agency’s Bus Segregation Scheme, enabling them to deceive traffic marshals and stop anywhere they like on Edsa.
At least 14 buses with fake stickers had been apprehended and their operators slapped with fines since last month, prompting the MMDA to devise a new marking system.
“We cannot say that these (new) stickers will not be copied again by bus operators but at least it will take time for them to do that,” MMDA chair Francis Tolentino said. “Bus operators and drivers have been resorting to using counterfeit stickers to defraud the enforcers so that they can load and unload passengers anywhere they please. It’s high time to put an end to bus drivers’ wanton disregard of the law.”
In 2012, the agency launched the segregation scheme on Edsa, a measure aimed at easing traffic congestion on the highway by preventing long queues from forming at bus stops. Under the scheme, buses are marked A, B and C based on the stops where they are allowed to load or unload passengers.
A and B buses are limited to certain bus stops while C buses are allowed at all stops on Edsa.
“The previous stickers were supposed to be valid for only one year and now that (the scheme) has reached its second year, more buses have tried to fake them, especially the C sticker,” Tolentino noted.
The MMDA chair admitted that the new stickers would not be 100-percent tamper-proof but noted that unscrupulous operators would have difficulty copying them because of the new color-coded system.
While the previous bus stickers were colored red, blue and a combination of the two, the new system will have green, yellow and orange stickers.
Buses with yellow stickers will follow the designated loading and unloading bays of Bus A: Magallanes, Buendia, Guadalupe, Shaw Boulevard, SM Megamall, Boni Serrano, Cubao Farmers and Ermin Garcia for northbound buses, and Ermin Garcia, Arayat Cubao, VV Soliven, Connecticut, Shaw Starmall, Guadalupe, Buendia Aveue and Mantrade for southbound buses.
Buses with green stickers will stop at Bus B loading and unloading bays. For northbound buses, the stops are at Ayala Avenue, Estrella, Pioneer/Boni, SM Megamall, Ortigas Avenue, Main Avenue and Baliwag/5 Star, while the stops for southbound buses are at Kamuning, Monte de Piedad, Main Avenue, POEA Ortigas, Pioneer/Boni, Estrella and Ayala Avenue.
Buses with orange stickers are allowed to load and unload at all bus stops along Edsa.
The new stickers will be issued free of charge to bus operators. Violators of the scheme are fined P1,000 for the first offense, P2,000 for the second and P3,000 for the third and subsequent offenses.
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