MANILA – The Anti-Lane Splitting bill and proposal for mandatory club registration for motorcycle riders could potentially worsen traffic and affect courier and delivery services that are of big help to the economy, according to Senator JV Ejercito on Monday.

House Bill No. 1419 or the Anti-Lane Splitting seeks to penalize motorcycle riders who attempt to pass between rows of vehicles on the same road, especially during heavy traffic.

On the other hand, House Bill No. 32 mandates motorcycle riders to join accredited clubs prior to vehicle registration and license renewal.

“Rest assured that the two bills – the Anti-Lane Splitting and mandatory membership in organizations — from Congress, I will not support (them) and make sure it doesn’t pass in the Senate,” he said in a news release on Monday.

Ejercito explained that lane-splitting lessens the exposure of motorcycle riders to pollution, bad weather, and other dangerous elements by reducing the time they spend in traffic.

“Other than prohibiting lane splitting, it would be better for the government to develop guidelines on how we can implement safe lane splitting or lane sharing. Let us always focus on how to make our roadS safe,” he said.

The measure discriminates against motorcycle drivers, arguing that most riders cannot afford to buy larger vehicles while other forms of vehicles are not subject to the same regulations, the senator said.

Worse, the imposition of new regulations and penalties exclusive to motorcycles will have a heavier impact on economically disadvantaged riders.

The other bill that requires motorcycle riders to join accredited clubs means transferring the responsibility of law enforcement from traffic enforcers to motorcycle clubs; an additional layer of bureaucracy; and new expenses on the part of motorcycle riders, according to Ejercito, a motorcycle enthusiast.

“Let’s not punish our fellow riders with unnecessary expenses. Our economic situation is already difficult with the ongoing pandemic,” Ejercito said.

Instead, he called on Congress to prioritize amendments to Republic Act (RA) No. 11235 or the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act.

Senate Bill No. 159, which Ejercito filed as one of his priority bills for the 19th Congress, seeks to replace the mandatory installation of oversized license plates in front of motorcycles with a radio-frequency identification scanner system.

The measure also aims to reduce the penalties stated under RA 11235 and align them with the penalties imposed on four-wheeled vehicles. (With a report from Leonel Abasola/PR)