The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will start today the reimplementation of the afternoon rush hour number coding scheme covering all private vehicles.
The move was made in time for the holiday season when traffic is expected to be heavy.
The Metro Manila Council (MMC), the MMDA’s governing board and policy-making body, approved a resolution on the implementation of the calibrated traffic mitigation measures in the National Capital Region aimed to avoid a traffic management crisis in the future.
The MMC is composed of the 17 mayors in Metro Manila.
Resolution 21-30 stated that per the recent travel survey and analysis conducted by the MMDA Traffic Engineering Center – including vehicle volume count, travel time and travel speed study, and average daily traffic rate – it was determined that the current traffic situation is
approaching the pre-pandemic levels.
MMDA chair Benjamin Abalos Jr. said the resumption of the number coding scheme in the metropolis will only cover private vehicles.
Those with registration plates ending in 1 and 2 are prohibited on Monday, 3 and 4 on Tuesday, 5 and 6 on Wednesday, 7 and 8 on Thursday, 9 and 0 on Friday.
Exempted from the scheme are public utility vehicles (including tricycles), transport network vehicle services (TNVS), motorcycles, garbage trucks, fuel trucks, motor vehicles carrying essential and/or perishable goods.
“Data shows that the travel speed along the northbound portion of EDSA is 9.66 kilometers per hour. Hence, we have to reinstate the number coding scheme during the afternoon rush hours to address the problem. We are trying to exhaust all options here,” Abalos said.
“The solution to this problem is efficient traffic management and mass transport system,” he added.
With the return of the number coding scheme, the agency is expecting approximately 2,700 vehicles per hour will be reduced plying EDSA alone. The light truck ban along EDSA will be reimplemented, also with modification.
Based on the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program (UVVRP) motor vehicle plate endings, light trucks shall be prohibited to ply EDSA between Magallanes, Makati City and North Avenue, Quezon City, both northbound and southbound, from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. from Mondays to Fridays, except holidays.
“Light trucks” refer to motor vehicles, whether for commercial use or not, with a gross capacity weight of 4,500 kilograms or below and/or having six (6) or more tires, the payload area of which are either enclosed or open.
Meanwhile, the total truck ban policy along EDSA between Magallanes, Makati City, and North Avenue, Quezon City, both northbound and southbound, shall remain and be strictly enforced except for garbage trucks, fuel trucks, and trucks carrying essential and/or perishable goods. On the other hand, the truck ban hours in the NCR shall remain suspended until further notice
“Trucks” refer to motor vehicles, whether for commercial use or not, with a gross capacity weight of above 4,500 kilograms.
