The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said that a modified number coding scheme will be implemented once Metro Manila transitions to a general community quarantine on June 1.
The agency said that depending on the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases guidelines, vehicles carrying more than one passenger will be exempted from the existing unified vehicular volume reduction program in Metro Manila.
“This is for motorists to maximize the vehicle’s seating capacity,” MMDA general manager Jojo Garcia said.
However, the agency clarified that it has yet to craft a resolution before the implementation of the modified number coding scheme.
As for mass transportation, the MMDA and members of the Metro Manila Council have agreed that public utility buses and jeepneys will remain prohibited under the general community quarantine in order to ensure the safety of the commuters amid the threat of the virus.
The agency said that modes of transportation in Metro Manila will only be limited to company-provided shuttle services, point-to-point vehicles, taxis, Transport Network Vehicle Services and tricycles.
Meanwhile, the MMDA is also encouraging the use of bicycles as an alternative form of transportation during the “new normal”. In a report by The STAR, the agency said that it would support protected and elevated bike lanes and not “pop-up” bike lanes on EDSA during the quarantine period.
MMDA EDSA traffic czar Bong Nebrija said that bicycle lanes should be elevated and protected unlike the trial run it conducted from White Plains Avenue to Bonny Serrano Avenue in Quezon City.
Nebrija told The STAR that the agency would rather have elevated bike lanes incorporated into the EDSA Greenways Project, which may start construction before yearend.
The project, funded by the Asian Development Bank, involves the construction of elevated walkways connecting the Light Rail Transit Line 1’s Balintawak Station and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3’s Cubao, Guadalupe and Taft stations. – With Marc Jayson Cayabyab
