MMDA eyes selective number coding in June

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is now eyeing the scrapping of the Unified Vehicle Volume Reduction Program (UVVRP) in several Metro Manila cities and municipalities by June 2006.

The agency said yesterday it was looking into the possibility of implementing a "selective" number coding scheme once the two-month reprieve expires.

MMDA special operations director Ramon Santiago said there are certain areas in Metro Manila where the UVVRP is not needed.

He said the number coding scheme, which prevents motorists from using their vehicles for one day of the week, only cause inconvenience to residents of some localities.

Santiago said Navotas, for example, is located at the boundary of Metro Manila with no major thoroughfare passing through it.

He noted that the idea is to limit the UVVRP to major thoroughfares in Metro Manila where there are huge volumes of vehicles like the 24-kilometer stretch of EDSA which cuts through five different cities.

The UVVRP, Santiago pointed out, was implemented in order to reduce vehicle volume and improve traffic flow along major thoroughfares.

"It would be better if we implement the scheme on specific thoroughfares on specific times of the day. This way the vehicles would not crowd the secondary streets," he said.

The MMDA decided to lift the UVVRP during the summer break, citing the reduction in vehicle volume.