September 25, 2024 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) has vowed to fix its radio frequency identification device (RFID) system to ensure its preparedness for the enforcement of new toll rules next year.
MPTC, operator of expressways in Luzon and Visayas, plans to use the deferral of toll penalties to improve its RFID scanners and integrate its database with the government.
MPTC chief corporate affairs officer Mark de Leon said the government made the right call when it pushed the deadline for the implementation of toll sanctions to 2025.
He said the deferral gives toll operators enough time to address outstanding issues as raised by lawmakers and motorists. Legislators, including Sen. Grace Poe, questioned the issuance of a joint memorandum circular (JMC) punishing travelers without electronic toll collection (ETC) devices or with insufficient RFID balance.
The JMC penalizes motorists who enter a tollway without an ETC device of as much as P5,000. It also sets a fine of up to P2,500 for exiting an expressway with insufficient RFID load.
The Toll Regulatory Board issued the JMC in line with its push to go full cashless in toll roads, a move that would eliminate cash payments and is expected to speed up traffic flow.
However, Poe asked whether toll concessionaires are ready to shift to a cashless ecosystem when motorists are reporting issues on the RFID readers in toll plazas.
Originally, the JMC was supposed to take effect last Aug. 31, then moved to Oct. 1, and was finally deferred to next year following a series of consultations with stakeholders.
For MPTC, De Leon said the deferral would allow it to refine its cashless transaction in time for the enforcement of the toll penalties in 2025. Likewise, MPTC plans to expedite the deployment of new technologies like license plate recognition cameras to detect violators.
“What [the government] said is next year. That is good enough for us to prepare for and integrate with the requirements of the government,” he said.
To date, MPTC unit MPT South has transitioned 80 percent of its toll gates to full cashless, and it will also transition the remaining cash lanes soon.
MPTC, the toll road arm of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., holds the concessions for the North Luzon Expressway, Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, Manila-Cavite Expressway, Cavite-Laguna Expressway and Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway.
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