The fate of a policy that will prohibit provincial buses from crossing Metro Manila’s busiest highway seems to be in a state of limbo after two officials of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) gave conflicting statements on its implementation.
In a report by The STAR, Celine Pialago, spokesperson for the MMDA, said that the agency has yet to determine a specific timeline for the policy’s implementation.
She commented that the implementation of the policy “could be moved to a later date” if it’s not yet ready, and that the ban on provincial buses on EDSA is not yet final until the agency “get the right formula for it.”
However, MMDA traffic chief Bong Nebrija contradicted Pialago’s statement, saying that the policy that is set to purge provincial buses on EDSA will be enforced by next month despite a transport group’s petition to stop its implementation.
“Everything is on the right track. The MMDA is ready for this. The policy will push through as planned,” Nebrija said.
The MMDA officials also gave conflicting statements on getting the opinion of the commuters about the provincial bus ban.
Pialago said that the agency will get the sentiments of the commuters while Nebrija said that a stakeholders’ meeting with transportation officials and operators of provincials buses would be held in lieu of consulting the public opinion. – With Robertzon Ramirez/STAR
