Court gives bikers green light to use tollways

After decades of waiting, motorcyclists can now use their bikes on the country’s tollways. That is, as far as a local court is concerned.

The Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) ruled late last week that motorcyclists have all the legal right to use the South and North Luzon Expressways (SLEX and NLEX) and all other tollways in the country.

In a five-page decision, Judge Teofilo Guadiz of the Makati RTC Branch 147 said the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) has no legal authority to ban motorcycles on such roads.

The government has been enforcing the Limited Access Law on the tollways since the 1950s, denying motorcyclists speedy and safe travel. Guadiz noted that because of the ban, motorcyclists are being forced to use side roads which are considered more dangerous for them.

Several motorcycle clubs representing some 5,000 bikers sought Guadiz’s ruling early this year

Frank Woolf, president of Freedom Riders club, one of the clubs behind the court case, said they have tried to convince the TRB and the Philippine National Construction Corp. (PNCC), which operates the SLEX and the NLEX to lift the ban on motorcycles but the two agencies only made them wait in vain for the past two and half years.

A source from the TRB said the board has not received a "clear copy" of the court’s order. However, the source said the five-man TRB would meet today to discuss the issue.

The PNCC, for its part, said it would follow whatever the TRB would say.

Safer route

Woolf claimed the tollway ban threatens public safety by forcing motorcyclists onto roads that are clearly not as safe as the tollways. He noted that 77 percent of a small number of motorcycle accidents in the country were caused by vehicles like jeepneys, buses and pedicabs pulling out at corners or suddenly crossing the road.

"These conditions simply do not exist on tollways," he said.

He cited a report by the United States-based Dynamic Research Inc. which showed that in all countries, tollways are the safest roads for motorcycles. In some areas, alternative routes even had over 100 times more accidents than tollways.

Simon Milward, secretary general of the 50,000-strong Federation of European Motorcyclist Associations (FEMA), observed in his short tour of the country early this year that local side streets were worse than those in the 27 mostly third world countries he has visited.

"He was a little frightened when he experienced for himself just how dangerous our side streets are," Woolf recalled.

Recent catastrophes have compounded motorcyclists’ problems. On the old highway that cuts through Laguna, for instance, bikers could no longer pass through the San Cristobal bridge that was closed for repair after a storm last year. The bridge has been turned into a market by local residents.

Woolf, an Englishman who has lived in Asia for the past 30 years and who rides a 1520-cc, six-cylinder Honda Valkkyrie to work, said he expects the lifting of the ban to benefit all Filipino bikers, especially those who live in Laguna in the south or in Bulacan in the north.

It would even promote motorcycle tourism, he said, since it would allow foreign bikers to easily go to Baguio or the Ilocos region through the expressway.

Enforce the law

There has been a proposal from PNCC chairman Luis Sison, a self-confessed biker, to open the tollways only to big motorcycles, particularly 400cc and above. But Woolf said this would be unnecessary.

"You just have to enforce the law," he said. "Those which cannot meet the minimum speed limit should not be allowed to use the tollways."

Woolf pointed out that Filipino drivers just have to get used to the sight of motorcycles on the tollways and respect the bikers as legitimate motorists.

It has been observed that Filipino drivers generally have less regard for people who travel on two-wheels. Some drivers even consider them nuisance on the road. But Woolf hopes this mindset would change.

Last Saturday, Woolf and hundreds of other bikers partied till midnight at the Glorietta parking lot to show the public what kind of people they are.

"We bikers are not criminals. We’re not drug addicts, we’re not speed freaks. Many of us are even executives who just cherish the freedom motorcycling offers," he said.

Woolf does not believe that allowing bikers to use the expressways would give way to accidents. He said accidents could never be completely prevented but they can be minimized. The gravity of injuries, too, could also be lessened as bikers and drivers get more educated.

"Bikers just have to dress properly for protection. The high speeds on the tollways will not necessarily mean more fatal accidents. Even in motorsports, bikers don’t get seriously injured because they have protection," he said.

Legal fight

Woolf, however, does not expect the TRB or the PNCC to lift the ban without a fight.

This early, a number of Freedom Riders already had a glimpse of things to come when they tried to use a short segment of the SLEX last Saturday. Armed with a copy of the court’s ruling, the bikers were allowed entry to the SLEX from Sucat but were apprehended on their exit in Bicutan. They were charged with reckless driving for violating the ban.

"We’re looking forward to a longer fight here," Woolf said. "We expect the TRB to file an appeal but we hope the higher courts would listen to us."

The centerpiece of the petition to lift the ban was Republic Act 2000 enacted by the Third Congress in 1957. It explicitly banned trucks, buses and other commercial vehicles from tollways. The law was enforced by then Department of Public Works and Communications (now DPWH) for years until 1993 when it delegated its powers to the TRB, which was created in 1977 to regulate tollways.

The motorcyclists said the TRB’s mandate under Presidential Decree 1112 was only to set toll rates and issue toll operation certificates. But it has turned itself into a motor vehicle regulatory body similar to the Land Transportation Office.

Former TRB chief Mariano "Sonny" Benedicto has admitted last March there was a flaw on the ban when he issued a memorandum ordering the ban’s review.

Benedicto said in a memorandum that the TRB’s technical staff has recommended that motorcycles be allowed to use the tollways because they "have been found to be safe and acceptable form of land transportation."

"To date, the Philippines is one of the few countries (Japan and South Korea) that does not allow motorcycles on expressways. International transport authorities have long recognized the substitution effect of motorcycles and actively encourage motorcyclists to use the safest part of the road network, which are the expressways, allowing access to expressways for this group of road users," he said.

A source said the TRB decision makers met last June 28 but were not completely convinced with the recommendations given by the board’s technical staff. "They wanted to be comforted on their safety concerns," the source revealed.

Reportedly, the TRB believes opening the tollways to motorcyclists should be done in stages. It is presently drafting rules and regulations for motorcycles and looking into ways on how the general public could be educated to respect people traveling on bikes.

The issues the TRB is reportedly looking into include the following: Should all motorcycles, regardless of size and make, be allowed to use the tollways? Should backrides be allowed? Should there be a separate license to use the tollways? How much toll fees should motorcyclists pay and should there be dedicated toll booths for motorcycles?

The TRB source explained that complying with the court ruling would not be very easy for the board or for the PNCC since both agencies will be accountable in the sad event that a motorcycle is injured or killed while using the tollways.

"Of course we will be following the courts, but we want to be ready before we open the gates to motorcycles," the source said. "It’s not as easy as the bikers think."