Motorcycle taxis should not be allowed along expressways —solon

Motorcycle taxis should not be allowed to ply expressways like the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), a party-list lawmaker said Sunday.

In a statement, Senior Citizen party-list Representative Francisco Datol Jr. said motorcycle taxis like Angkas may be allowed to travel along national and local roads, but not along expressways as this could be dangerous for them.

"On highways, motorcycles with paying passengers are not safe because of high risks concerning speed and larger other vehicles on the road," he said.

Datol, in a recent House hearing, suggested that traffic enforcers should not hold back in enforcing the law against low engine capacity units plying expressways.

He said the House should be provided with data on the effectiveness of motorcycle lanes along EDSA and other highways.

"If those lanes are ineffective, then we need other options," he said.

Datol advised the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to disaggregate its data on motorcycle accidents on the road and traffic violations, as these details could be more relevant than annual totals only.

"Which incidents involve Angkas and other riders with passengers? Where did the violations happen? EDSA, C5, SLEX, NLEX, highways, national roads, local roads? What are the types of violations?" he said.

"Those violations with paying passengers are the most relevant because of the franchise issues. Those without these issues are partially relevant only because of road safety matters but not franchise-related," he added. —Erwin Colcol/KG, GMA News