STARTING next month, traffic enforcers of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and local government units in the National Capital Region (NCR) will implement the single ticketing system (STS).
MMDA chairman Romando Artes made the announcement following a meeting with members of the Metro Manila Council (MMC), the agency’s governing and policy-making body composed of the 17 NCR mayors.
During the meeting, the MMDA turned over the 150 handheld ticketing device units to the local executives of Valenzuela, San Juan, Caloocan, Parañaque, and Muntinlupa.
The handheld gadgets will be used for the implementation of the STS. The devices could print citation tickets, validate and authenticate driver’s licenses and vehicle registrations, check if the driver has incurred demerit points or if his/her license or the vehicle registration is suspended, canceled, or has an existing alarm, accept cashless payments of fines, among others.
“With the delivery of these servers, handheld ticketing devices, we will be able to roll out within this quarter, by September to all local government units in NCR,” Artes said.
The MMDA chief said full implementation of the program was delayed due to a delay in the delivery of the devices and that the pilot operation was subjected to some customization.
“We will provide more depending on the need and request of the LGUs,” he said.
Last month, the MMDA distributed to local government units the initial batch of the handheld devices.
Artes said the MMDA asked the supplier to equip the device with dual SIM cards to avoid poor signal reception. He added that the agency trained the local traffic enforcers on how to use the device.
The STS enables interconnectivity among government agencies involved in traffic management through a single system of fines and penalties.
It also aimed to help cut red tape, limit opportunities for corruption, and eradicate forms of negotiations between the motorist and the apprehending officer.
Local traffic enforcers have already been trained on how to enforce the Metro Manila Traffic Code of 2023 serving as guidelines for the new system, which “may also be implemented nationwide, if successful.”
The MMDA had signed agreements with the Land Transportation Office for the interconnectivity of local government units in Metro Manila with
the agency’s Land Transportation Management System (LTMS).
Artes said the signing of the memorandum and data sharing was a historic legislation in the MMC since it took 28 years before being fully realized.