Heavy traffic marks first day of new cashless system at NLEX

The first day of the shift to a digital cashless system at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) was marred by heavy traffic.

According to Mark Salazar’s “24 Oras” report on Tuesday, the line at the Mindanao toll gate stretched half a kilometer, while vehicles waiting to pass through the NLEX spilled out onto Karuhatan, Valenzuela.

Traffic peaked in the afternoon, with lines of vehicles stretching from the toll plaza to the EDSA Service Road.

The Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) said the volume of vehicles that piled up on the expressway was merely “birth pains.”

“Any new system, new procedure that you introduce, initially nagkakaroon ng tinatawag na some birth pains. Usual po, basta first working day of the week, peak travel po ‘yan, Manila-bound whether coming from the north or from the south,” TRB spokesman Julius Corpuz said.

The spokesman added that the traffic was likely aggravated by the long weekend, which saw many Filipinos visiting the provinces.

A traffic enforcer also said the faulty sticker reading machines worsened the situation.

“Minsan may mabagal magbasa, minsan nag-e-error, hindi binabasa ‘yung RFID,” he said.

The TRB said these concerns had been addressed.

“Number one, tinaas po nila ang reading range to 10 meters. Number two, naglagay sila ng tinatawag na device na puwede ninyong i-tap ‘yung inyong card nang sa gano’n, mabasa. Hindi na ninyo kailangan pang umatras,” Corpuz said.

“Number three, meron po dapat RFID assistance personnel na may hawak na handheld reader para mabasa ‘yung sticker ninyo,” he added.

Starting December 1, authorities aim to install 60,000 stickers per day for some 750,000 vehicles that ply the NLEX and the South Luzon Expressway. — Julia Mari Ornedo/DVM, GMA News