MANILA, Philippines – A traffic scheme that would ban certain car brands from EDSA on specific days is being proposed to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to address traffic congestion. 

Former Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation consultant Ariston Gorospe submitted his proposed “vehicular brand reduction program” to the MMDA just days after the agency publicized another proposal – making EDSA a one-way road – which commuters and a senator called “ridiculous and not well thought of.” 

The background of Gorospe’s proposal included a list of the number of units sold in 2018 for each vehicle model. The top-selling vehicles in data are the following:

• Toyota and Lexus – 73,136
• Mitsubishi – 33,506
• Hyundai – 15,957
• Nissan – 13,222
• Ford – 12,017

Based on the sales figures, Gorospe grouped together vehicles that would be banned per day of the week:

• Monday – Toyota
• Tuesday – Mitsubishi, Hyundai, Isuzu
• Wednesday – Nissan, Ford, Foton
• Thursday – Honda, Chevrolet, Mazda, Subaru
• Friday – Suzuki, Kia, Volkswagen, Mercedez Benz
• Saturday – JAC, Tata, Audi, BAIC
• Sunday – Mini and Lotus, Volvo, Ssangyong, and others

However, vehicles used for emergencies, such as ambulances and fire trucks, are excluded from the proposed coding scheme, along with the following:

• Police patrol cars
• Military vehicles
• Cargo trucks and other heavy vehicles
• Department of Tourism accredited vehicles
• Government vehicles
• Diplomatic vehicles
• MMDA-accredited trucks

MMDA Spokesperson Celine Pialago said she was trying to “help these people out,” referring to the proponents of unusual solutions to traffic, in presenting their ideas to the people.

She said the agency studies every proposal that is given to them, “especially the extreme ideas.” 

Last Wednesday, August 28, engineering group Guevara and Partners Incorporated presented a traffic scheme to the MMDA that would make EDSA and C-5 paired one way roads, backed by a study conducted in 2014.

Pialago said that studies like these are appreciated and will be studied by the agency’s engineering department. – Rappler.com