GMA Brandtalk
Tracking
Archives
DOTr's Dizon orders suspension of cashless toll collection in expressways
New Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon has ordered the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) to suspend the reimplementation of cashless toll collection in all expressways which was supposed to take effect March 15, saying the efficiency of the automated toll collection should be evaluated first.
“I've already told TRB to suspend that cashless [toll collection],where there will be no cash lane anymore And I will tell you why. Number one, this was tried already in the past, we probably remember what happened in Balintawak and in other choke points in NLEX and SLEX. Nagka-buhol buhol ‘yan,” Dizon. who served as Presidential Adviser for Flagship Projects during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, said at a press conference Friday.
(What happened was chaos.)
“Kasi, I guess, for whatever reason, hindi na-disseminate ang information, etc. So, I want to first work with the two tall operators, MPTC and San Miguel, at tignan muna natin yung sistema. Is there a way to make it more efficient? Okay ba? Lahat ba ng barrier gumagana? Lahat ba ng RFID [stickers on vehicles] nababasa?,” Dizon added.
(I guess it is because the information was not properly disseminated then. We have to look at the system first. Is it okay? Are all barriers working? Are all RFID stickers on vehicles readable by the machines?)
Pending resolution of these problems, Dizon said the cashless toll collection will only bring harm that good.
(If we still have those problems and our system is not perfect, it is not yet the time to jump on this cashless toll collection.)
“I've already sent word to the toll operators that we're not going cashless on March 15. And we are not going cashless for the foreseeable future,” Dizon added.
‘Anti-poor’
In addition, Dizon said the removal of cash lanes in tollways is anti-poor.
“Having a cashless system is not pro-poor, it is anti-poor. Why? Tayo siguro dito, kaya mag-load sa Easy Trip tsaka sa Autosweep ng P2,000, P3,000, P5,000, P10,000. Pero paano yung mga kababayan natin na sagad-sagad ang budget, ‘di ba? Hindi sila makakaload,” Dizon said.
(Maybe for us here, we can afford to load our Easy Trip and Auto-sweep tollway accounts worth P2,000, P3,000, P5,000, P10,000. But how about our fellow Filipinos who are on a shoestring budget? They will not be able to load their tollway accounts enough.)
Dizon said there are also instances when a driver who is already tired from a labor-intensive job could forget to put money on his toll account.
“Anong gagawin niya? Kalbaryo na naman yun. Pagpapahirap na naman sa tao ‘yun,” Dizon said.
(In that situation, why make a person suffer? We will only add to their burden.)
Dizon said that while there is a need to regulate and make the process more efficient, it should not be at the expense of burdening the people.
“The need to regulate should not result in making the lives of people difficult. Dapat gumiginhawa ang buhay ng tao, hindi pinapahirapan. Itong cashless [toll collection] na ‘to, tingin ko, pagpapahirap ito eh,” Dizon said.
(Regulations should alleviate the struggles of our people, not the other way around. A cashless toll collection is an added burden.)
“Kaya hindi ako naniniwala diyan. Siguro, pagdating ng panahon, na perfect na ‘yung system, and then, pero right now, I don't believe in it. So I asked them to stop it,” he added.
(That is why I am not a believer of that. When the time comes that we have perfected the system, then we will consider. ) — RSJ, GMA Integrated News
