MANILA — An official of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Friday reiterated that tricycles and pedicabs are not allowed to ply along national roads
“Ang mga tricycles at pedicabs ay matagal nang ipinagbabawal sa national roads. Sa mga tricycle and pedicab drivers: hindi kayo dapat sanational roads. Sa looban lang kayo (Tricycles and pedicabs are not allowed to operate along national roads for such a long time. To the tricycle and drivers: you are only allowed on inner roads),” MMDA Special Task Force Operations Commander Bong Nebrija said in a radio interview Friday.
Nebrija was reacting to reports over social media of unregulated tricycles and pedicabs traversing along major roads in the metropolis.
Nebrija noted that local government units have the jurisdiction over the franchises of pedicabs and tricycles.
“Ang franchising at regulatory ng tricycle ay nasa LGU po yan. Hindi naman po dapat nagkakaroon ng conflict dahil ang national roads pinanatili yan ng MMDA. Nagtataka kami bakit nakakakuha ng ruta sa national roads ang mga tricycles? (Franchising and regulating tricycles are under the LGUs. There should not be any conflict as the MMDA manages the national roads. We are wondering how the tricycles were able to get routes along national roads?),” Nebrija said.
An ordinance, passed by the Metro Manila Council in 1990, states that pedicabs and motorized tricycles are prohibited from operating along highways and major thoroughfares within Metro Manila and are limited only to tertiary roads and within subdivisions.
The ordinance imposes a fine of PHP300 or a 10-day jail term for violators.
Earlier, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has urged all all city and municipal mayors to ban pedicabs and tricycles along national highways, whether in Metro Manila or in the provinces.
Allowing pedicabs and tricycles on major thoroughfares poses serious hazards to other vehicles, the riding public and even to the drivers themselves, DILG officer-in-charge Eduardo Año said.
Under the Local Government Code, city and municipal mayors, through their respective sanggunians (councils), are authorized to regulate the operation of tricycles within their territorial jurisdiction, subject to the guidelines prescribed by the Department of Transportation. (Aerol John Pateña/PNA)
