Public can help fine-tune driving law

A man drives while using his cellphone to check the traffic in Taft Avenue, Manila.INQUIRER PHOTO / RICHARD A. REYES

The Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) technical working group is set to meet as early as next week to “fine-tune” guidelines related to the Anti-Distracted Driving Act (Adda) and entertain suggestions from the public, following the confusion and widespread criticism that marked its implementation last week.

The department suspended the law on Tuesday, saying it was heeding the advice of several lawmakers to defer its enforcement.

The DOTr is revisiting the law’s implementing rules and regulations (IRR) to better reflect the “spirit and intention” of the measure, which restricts the use or placement of communication devices inside vehicles, according to an official of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

Aileen Lizada, LTFRB board member and spokesperson, said that once the IRR had been revised, an information campaign will be conducted for several months.

Apart from the DOTr and LTFRB, the technical working group will include the Land Transportation Office, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, the Philippine National Police’s Highway Patrol Group, and congressional representatives from the offices of Sen. JV Ejercito and House transportation committee chair Rep. Cesar Sarmiento.

Also included are road safety advocacy group Imagine Law, Automobile Association of the Philippines, Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines and World Health Organization.

The public can send in their suggestions to improve the traffic measure through the LTFRB’s social media channels, she said.

So as not to sow confusion this time around, the group would first focus the information campaign on provisions regarding the use of mobile phones and other electronic devices while driving, Lizada added.

With regards to car accessories which may block a driver’s view, Lizada said the matter would be addressed by the LTFRB in a separate memorandum circular for public utility vehicles while a similar memorandum may be issued for private cars.

Lizada also said motorists caught through the MMDA’s no-contact apprehension system for violating of the Adda, before it was suspended, would no longer be sent notices.

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