More suggestions, schemes

Still working on the EDSA rehabilitation and traffic management, the MMDA will reimplement the odd-even scheme first started in 1996. The said scheme will only be enforced along the whole stretch of EDSA for 24 hours. To review, plates ending in odd numbers 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 will be forbidden to use EDSA on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays while those ending in even numbers 2, 4, 6, 8, and 0 are banned on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Sunday is a free day for this scheme.

That’s not the only thing motorists have to be aware of. While the odd-even scheme holds for the entire length of EDSA, the number coding scheme is still in effect in all other roads. So, if you have a vehicle with a plate ending in 1, you cannot use EDSA on Monday and can only go out during the window hours of 10 AM until 5 PM for other roads. Electric and hybrid vehicles are still exempt from both traffic schemes. Lucky them. There are already a considerable number of electric and hybrid vehicles on the road. If there are other exemptions, the MMDA must list them.

As for the No Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP), over 1,100 violators were monitored on the first day of its reimplementation. I can just imagine the queue for contesting these violations. From what I know, letters will be sent to the registered owner of the vehicle, where a fine must be paid. They should provide a means to pay online to avoid queues. I wonder what the breakdown of those thousand-plus vehicles is, and what the most frequent violation is. That should be published.

The EDSA scheme will have a dry run lasting a month on June 16. Violators will be given a citation, but no fines. This is for motorists to get used to the scheme, along with the old number coding scheme. Once again, I have to ask if the MMDA and other traffic enforcers will strictly implement these schemes where they apply, and not give preferential treatment to VIPs, government officials, and politicians who tend to disregard traffic rules for the sole reason of entitlement.

I can imagine a hell-like scenario during the first weeks of these new traffic implementations. But we just have to buckle up and try to enjoy the ride. Two years is a long time, but hopefully we get accustomed by the third or fourth month. Just imagine what EDSA will look like with a smooth sheet of asphalt overlay when this is all done.