The chairperson of the House Committee on Metro Manila Development on Monday recommended reducing tollway rates at the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 to alleviate traffic congestion along EDSA.

Manila Rep. Rolando Valeriano made the statement in reaction to the call of the business group Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) for the government to declare a “state of traffic calamity” in Metro Manila.

Valeriano said Skyway 3 rates are unaffordable to the average motorist, especially given high fuel prices these days.

He appealed to Skyway 3 owner and operator San Miguel Corporation (SMC) and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to find ways to cut toll prices so that more motorists, cargo vehicles, and provincial buses would use the Skyway 3 as an alternative to EDSA.

“Skyway 3’s impact on EDSA traffic was strongly felt when it was toll-free from December 2020 to July 2021, but after that most motorists chose to endure EDSA traffic because they could not afford the rates on Skyway,” Valeriano said.

The Skyway Stage 3 is an 18-kilometer elevated expressway spanning from Buendia in Makati to Balintawak in Quezon City.

It is also a thoroughfare connecting the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) to the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX).

“Buses from PITX, Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas going to Central Luzon and further north should be taking the Skyway 3 instead of EDSA but the toll fee should not be exorbitant,” Valeriano said.

According to Toll Regulatory Board website, the Skyway Stage 3 operator charged PHP264 for Class 1, PHP528 for Class 2, and PHP792 for Class 3 vehicles from Buendia to North Luzon Expressway and vice-versa.

Valeriano also urged the Department of Public Works and Highways to build elevated multi-level and multi-purpose parking facilities in strategic locations.

“Elevated parking will clear roads of vehicles obstructing traffic and vendors that occupy sidewalks and lanes of roads. Elevated parking can be built on both private and public lots, abandoned lots, and expropriated lots,” he said.

The House leader, meanwhile, supported the return of the no-contact apprehension policy all over Metro Manila.

“Traffic enforcers should focus solely on providing traffic management assistance, rather than be the messenger of punitive measures. Traffic enforcers should be on the roads to get traffic moving, not stopping vehicles to issue traffic citation tickets,” he said. (PNA)