Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian on Monday suspended the business permit of NLEX Corp. after it failed to address the worsening traffic situation caused by its RFID toll system.
Gatchalian personally served the signed Executive Order suspending the business permit and business operations of NLEX to the toll operator’s offices in Valenzuela.
“The suspension order means that motorists can still pass through the NLEX system but toll fees will no longer be collected,” the city government of Valenzuela said in Twitter post.
Following the suspension, the Valenzuela government installed ‘NO BUSINESS PERMIT, NO TOLL FEE COLLECTION’ signages in all NLEX toll plazas within the city and also raised the boom barriers to ensure smooth flow of traffic.
“Sinuspinde ng Pamahalaang Lungsod ng Valenzuela ang business permit ng NLEX Corporation sa mga toll plaza na sakop ng Valenzuela City,” the city government said in a Facebook post.
“Dahil dito ay hindi muna maaaring maningil ng toll fee ang mga toll gate na nasa Brgy. Karuhatan, Lawang Bato, Paso de Blas, at Ugong. Magkakaroon ng toll holiday sa mga toll plaza na ito na nangangahulugang lahat ng boom barriers o gates ay bubuksan nang libre para sa mga dadaan sa NLEX,” it added.
Before the suspension, Gatchalian wrote a letter to NLEX chief operating officer Raul Ignacio asking why the city government should not suspend their business permit.
“This serves as our formal complaint and final demand against your corporation for the unusually heavy traffic in Valenzuela City being caused by your RFID system and toll booths since the full implementation of cashless toll collection last December 1,” the letter read.
“Although the holiday rush, coupled with the lifting of truck ban and number coding scheme give rise to heavier volume of vehicles on the road, the abysmal state of your RFID system contributes to the chaos and exacerbates the already dreadful traffic situation in the city, which were caused by your nonchalant careless manner of implementing your RFID system,” he added.
The cashless toll collection system, implemented on December 1, snarled traffic in the area and affected thousands of motorists.