MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is considering banning driver-only cars along Edsa. 

“Finloat ‘yung idea….Walang nag-negative (The idea was floated….Nobody thumbed it down),” MMDA chief of staff Jojo Garcia told reporters during a press conference after the MMDA’s meeting with Metro Manila mayors.

The measure is included in the proposed EDSA Modified Car Pooling Policy, which also proposes the exemption of cars with at least two passengers, excluding the driver, from the number coding scheme.

If approved, the provisions will be effective from 7 am to 8 pm, during weekdays, and will be applied to both private and public vehicles.

Garcia said the MMDA sees carpooling as a cure to traffic congestion in Metro Manila.

Citing MMDA data, Garcia said that 8 in 10 cars in Metro Manila have no passengers and have only one driver.

He said that by banning the driver-only cars from the country’s busiest thoroughfare, the MMDA hopes that people will coordinate their trips so that the volume of vehicles will be reduced. 

The proposal has yet to be deliberated on and tested.

Garcia said that with the start of the Christmas season, when traffic gets heavier, the council has decided to defer testing the “EDSA ban” to early 2018.

The MMDA may also face another roadblock: car tints, which will prevent traffic enforcers from seeing how many passengers are inside cars.

The MMDA will have to present its findings to the Metro Manila Council which will approve or reject the proposal.

Read the full proposal here:

 – Rappler.com