PENDING approval from the Metro Manila Council which is composed of all 17 mayors of the National Capital Region, the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is ready to implement a number-coding scheme for private vehicles only. The scheme will ban cars from Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA) two days a week depending on the last digit of their license plate number.
The MMDA is vigorously pushing its objective of reducing vehicular traffic in the NCR by 40 percent. The authority wants its Unified Volume Reduction Program to include two coding days for each car.
MMDA Chairman Romando Artes confirmed that the agency was moving forward with the 40 percent plan, which
‘… traffic in Metro Manila has returned to congested levels and so, the MMDA’s move to act swiftly should be supported by local officials, motorists and the public. ’
was awaiting the approval of the Metro Manila Council. The scheme could be effective by May 1, 2022.
Under the scheme, plate numbers ending in the following numbers must stay off EDSA from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on the following days: 1 and 2, Monday and Wednesday; 3 and 4, Monday and Thursday; 5 and 6, Tuesday and Thursday; 7 and 8, Tuesday and Friday; and 9 and 0, Wednesday and Friday.
This new regulation applies only to private vehicles, Artes said, while taxis, transport network vehicle service, public utility jeepneys, buses and the like are excluded. Artes said that the scheme could reduce up to 1,174 private cars on the northbound side of EDSA, ensuring a “light to moderate flow” of vehicles.
It is well within the mandate of the MMDA to tweak the traffic regulations on EDSA, which is the biggest and most important thoroughfare in Metro Manila. It is not clear, however, if the two-day number coding scheme will also be implemented in the rest of Metro Manila’s streets.
With the reopening of the economy as a result of the nation’s winning fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, traffic in Metro Manila has returned to congested levels and so, the MMDA’s move to act swiftly should be supported by local officials, motorists and the public.
