SOME ELECTRIC tricycle (e-trike) drivers at Quiapo, Manila expressed their discontent on April 13 over the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority’s (MMDA) prohibition of electric vehicles (e-vehicles) on national roads in Metro Manila, two days before the ban officially took effect.
They said that the ban would significantly impact their livelihood as e-trike drivers, emphasizing the difficulty of completing necessary documents for their vehicles, as well as the ban’s “unfair” regulation.
“Ito lang po ‘yong alam naming hanapbuhay po. Hindi ko rin po matatanggap na mawawala ‘yong panghanapbuhay po namin,” 23-year-old e-trike driver Ronnie Boy Borja said.
(This is the only job we know. I can’t accept that our source of income will be gone.)
Borja added that being an e-trike driver helped him sustain his family and pay his bills.
Jason Lopez, 41, an e-trike driver for more than a decade, also opposed the ban, adding that complying with the required documents to operate an e-trike is costly.
“Bukod sa gagastos ka pa, napakaraming gustong kumuha, hindi rin makakuha. Ang hirap ng paglakad-lakad ng mga papeles,” he said.
(Besides spending so much money, there are also drivers who want to obtain all the necessary documents, but they are not able to. It’s difficult to finish all the paperwork.)
Lopez also added that instead of strict regulations, e-trike drivers should be given protected routes to prevent incidents.
According to MMDA’s Memorandum Circular 04, one of the penalties is “impoundment, seizure and confiscation of motor vehicle, in case the vehicle is not registered and/or the driver has no license.”
E-trike driver Eiman Liwan, 25, however, said that he agrees with the prohibition of e-vehicles, but stated that the ban was unfair.
“Ang masakit lang po sa amin [ay] ‘yong [mga] e-trike ng Maynila—katulad din po sa amin ‘yon e, three wheels po eh, ‘yon lang daw ang hindi iba-ban. ‘Yong sa amin lang ang banned.”
“Hindi pala patas dito sa Maynila,” he continued.
(What hurts me is that the e-trikes of Manila that are just the same as ours won’t be banned. Only our e-trikes are banned. It’s not fair in Manila.
Liwan added that even though he has completed all the required documents for his e-trike, traffic officers still penalize him and his fellow drivers, but not e-trikes under the Manila Local Government Unit’s (LGU) e-trike program.
MMDA Chairman Romando Artes said in a press conference on April 17 that LGUs have authority to decide if e-vehicles are allowed in routes that are not listed in the memorandum.
'Embrace and integrate’
In a press release on Feb. 28, Artes also stated that e-vehicles should be regulated because they have been a “common cause of traffic and road crash incidents.”
But Move As One (MAO) Coalition Active Transport Sector Lead Cristina Balla told the Manila Pulse on April 16 that the ban is unnecessary if MMDA’s goal was to reduce road incidents, citing the agency’s 2022 annual report with only about 2% of all road crashes involved bikes, e-bikes, and pedicabs, while 52% involved cars.
“They say it’s increasing, however, there’s obviously a huge bias to creating negative propaganda on two and three-wheelers,” she added.
Batalla also stated that the prohibition is “anti-poor” and creates an impression that e-bikes are dangerous, fostering “unfair biases” on e-vehicles as modes of transportation.
“These transport modes help me and so many other people who don’t want to buy a private car, but to get around very easily. So, by having these kinds of bans, it’s really doing us more harm than good,” the sector lead explained.
According to Batalla, one solution is “to embrace and integrate, not to overregulate” through proper categorization of e-vehicles and other modes of transportation.
“Doon sa mga naging guidelines ng LTO (Land Transportation Office) and MMDA, very vague ang categories nila. Hindi malinaw kung ano ba talaga ‘yong mga transport modes na tinutukoy nila,” she said.
(LTO and MMDA’s guidelines on the categories of the vehicles were very vague. It does not clearly state what vehicles are being indicated.)
She emphasized that the vehicles should be categorized according to their speed, weight, whether licensing and helmets are required for a particular vehicle, data collection standards, and the like.
Batalla also discussed that a “paradigm shift” is needed to prioritize the movement of people, instead of the movement of motor vehicles, stressing that the climate should also be considered.
“The more that we promote motor vehicles over active transport and mass transit, mas lalong nag-i-increase ‘yong carbon emissions, nag-wo-worsen ‘yong polusyon sa syudad, [at] lumalala ang init,” she explained.
(The more that we promote motor vehicles over transport and mass transit, carbon emissions will increase, pollution in the city will worsen, as well as the heat.)
Batalla raised concerns about the government’s lack of consultation with active transport advocacy groups like PISTON, Make It Safer Movement, and MAO at the traffic town hall on April 10.
However, she clarified that she has no problem if MMDA decided to consult with other civil society organizations provided that there would be an inclusive discussion.
“Ang mas concern namin is kaninong boses ba ang napapakinggan diyan? Kaninong mga karanasan ang sinasali? Doon sa Traffic Summit, OK, nand’on lahat ng mga concerned government officials pero mayroon bang ginagawang espasyo ang MMDA na pakinggan ang mismong mga e-trike and e-bike users?” the sector lead said.
(We’re more concerned about whose voice is heard in that town hall, whose experiences are being included. In the Traffic Summit, OK, all the concerned government officials are there, but is the MMDA creating space to listen to e-trike and e-bike users?)
According to Batalla, participatory governance can achieve a safe and inclusive transportation system.
“It’s the kind of governance that encourages participation, is transparent, and is accountable to the public, and this is not what MMDA has been practicing despite its mandates,” she said.
Besides electric bicycles, e-trikes, and other e-vehicles, all tricycles, pushcarts, pedicabs, and kuligligs (two-wheeled tractors) are also prohibited from plying national roads and thoroughfares in Metro Manila.
The e-vehicle ban became effective on April 15. – Mharla Francesca Santiano/Manila Pulse
Comments