House to summon expressway execs over faulty RFID system

(INQUIRER file photo / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE)

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives may be poised to start reviewing the franchise of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) if fails to address problems related to its Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) collection system, House Deputy Majority Leader Rep. Erwin Tulfo said on Sunday.

In a statement, Tulfo noted that Speaker Martin Romualdez is set to summon NLEX officials and make them explain why RFIDs of vehicles cannot be read at the toll gates, which resulted in traffic congestion on Holy Wednesday.

“Many got angry and reported to Speaker Romualdez that their RFID stickers were not being read when passing through the toll plaza, which caused the very long traffic on NLEX that day,” Tulfo was quoted as saying in Filipino.

Tulfo, however, added that South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) and Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) officials would also be summoned by Romualdez.

“Not only NLEX but also SLEX and Toll Regulatory officials will be convened by the Speaker to find out what steps they are taking regarding the malfunctioning of RFID at some toll gates. The Speaker wants to know if it’s their RFID reader or RFID laser that is defective and is causing this,” Tulfo said.

He also alleged that the expressways use “cheap” RFID readers.

“That unreadable RFID has been a long-standing complaint, and it has already reached Speaker Romualdez through some of our colleagues in Congress,” Tulfo, who is the Deputy Majority Leader of Congress for Communications, said.

 “Now if they can’t fix it, perhaps Congress can start reviewing their franchises upon the instruction of the Speaker, of course […] and maybe there are others out there who can find a solution to that problem,” Tulfo said.

Meanwhile, TRB spokesperson Julius Corpuz said in a dzBB interview that their toll operators are prepared for the expected influx of motorists on Easter Sunday.