The League of Municipalities of Bulacan urged the government Thursday to return cash lanes and stop the RFID system, for now, to resolve the heavy traffic building at North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), Saleema Refran reported on “24 Oras.”
“Maglagay muna ng temporary cash lanes para hindi humaba ang pila. Parang nirereklamo namin actually dito, ‘yung mahabang pila na nung minsan kasagsagan nito, umabot ng limang kilometro,” league president and Guiguinto Mayor Ambrosio Cruz Jr. said.
“So naapektuhan ‘yung negosyo, naapektuhan ‘yung commuters, naapektuhan ‘yung mga motorists,” he added.
Toll Regulatory Board’s (TRB) audit already showed the problems that led them to present solutions to toll operators.
“The instruction to the operator is to relocate po ‘yung mga plaza particularly po doon po sa may Balintawak, . . . although hindi po nago-operate ngayon ‘yung Karuhatan and then the Mindanao Plaza,” TRB executive director Abraham Sales said.
“I believe na ‘yun po talaga ‘yung nag-cause ng traffic congestion sa lugar na ‘yun. In addition po sa mga glitches na naobserbahan din po in the past,” he added.
During rush hour, emergency lanes are used as transaction lanes while broken and defective RFID sensors and tags are being replaced.
NLEX toll holiday in Valenzuela
Meanwhile, the toll holiday continues in Valenzuela City this Tuesday after the city Monday suspended the business permit of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) operator due to alleged persecution caused by their paralyzed cashless system.
As a result, vehicles are moving faster in parts of NLEX in Valenzuela.
Motorists are free to pass through the exits in Valenzuela because NLEX is no longer allowed to charge toll fees in the city.
Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation, the operator of NLEX, is at the center of the controversy due to its alleged improper implementation of the radio-frequency identification (RFID) system, causing heavy traffic in Valenzuela.
According to Mayor Rex Gatchalian, the toll holiday will continue as long as NLEX does not fix their system, which allegedly hurts customers.
On Wednesday, Gatchalian canceled the dialogue between Valenzuela city local government and NLEX Corp. to discuss the RFID cashless payment scheme.
The development came after NLEX management expressed plans to file a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Valenzuela LGU’s suspension of its business permit.