MMDA forms task force on unsettled traffic fines

The Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) has announced the creation of a special team of traffic enforcers that will man the stretch of EDSA and apprehend bus drivers who have not settled their traffic violation fines and penalties since January this year.

Members of the so-called "elite team," now known as "Task Force Hunter," have been authorized to confiscate license plates or impound public utility buses (PUBs) being driven by those who have failed to settle their traffic violation receipts (TVRs).

MMDA Executive Director Angelito Vergel de Dios said the 20-man team of traffic enforcers would be on the lookout for at least 520 bus drivers of units owned by 354 bus companies.

The driver’s licenses of erring drivers, he explained, have already been suspended from a week to three months, depending on their violations, which means they shoud not be allowed to drive.

The violations range from colorum or out-of-line operations, trip cutting to driving under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs.

"No one is above the law. We will throw the book at these dangerous public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers," Vergel de Dios said.

MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando has long been warning drivers against ignoring their fines and penalties.

He said drivers should think twice since the agency has records of violators and would get them at the right time for ignoring their TVRs.