Bill requiring vehicle owners in NCR, major cities to have parking space filed in House

A bill requiring motor vehicle owners residing in Metro Manila and major cities to have their own garage or parking space has been filed in the House of Representatives.

Marinduque Representative Lord Allan Velasco made the proposal under House Bill 31 which also mandates the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to verify the document submitted by the registrant/purchaser that they have a space for the vehicle.

He said this is to deter the proliferation of vehicles occupying the roadsides or sidewalks.

Velasco said that measure is needed given the rising ownership of private cars due to economic growth, rising incomes, low downpayments, and cheap auto loans.

Aside from the National Capital Region, the bill covers the following areas:

• Angeles City in Pampanga
• Bacolod City in Negros Occidental
• Baguio City in Benguet
• Batangas City in Batangas
• Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental
• Cebu City in Cebu
• Dagupan City in Pangasinan
• Davao City in Davao del Sur
• Iloilo City in Iloilo
• Naga City in Camarines Sur, and
• Olongapo City in Zambales, among others.

"Private cars are easy to own and cheap to use. While traffic congestion can be the result of a myriad of causes, the same is exacerbated by car owners who routinely use public roads as parking spaces," Velasco said in his explanatory note on the measure.

"When roads become parking lots, there will be longer trip times and increased vehicular queuing. It has been acutely observed that this situation is prevalent in the mentioned metropolitan areas," he added.

The measure requires a person buying a motor vehicle to execute a notarized affidavit attesting to the availability of a permanent parking space or facility or that a parking space or facility has been leased or procured specifically for the vehicle.

The said affidavit executed by the prospective buyer of motor vehicles will then be presented to the Land Transportation Office (LTO) as a prerequisite for registration.

The same document must be kept on file and will be produced when there is a claim or evidence that the parking space or facility does not exist.

"No motor vehicle may be legally conveyed in the absence of a public document duly attested to by the prospective buyer of a motor vehicle and acknowledged before a notary public, that a permanent parking space or facility already exists for the motor vehicle which is subject of the sale," the bill read.

The bill also provides that the registrant will be bound by the claims stated in the document and will be held liable for untruthful statements made in his affidavit under Articles 171 and 172 of the Revised Penal Code, without prejudice to any other cases that may be filed against such person.

A motor vehicle registration issued to an owner will be revoked if it is proven such has been obtained from the LTO by making untrue claims.

The motor vehicle owner involved in the fraud, for his or her part, will be banned from registering a motor vehicle under his or her name for a period of three years on top or paying a fine worth P50,000 for every violation.

Any officer or employee of the LTO who allowed the registration of a motor vehicle without the necessary document required, with knowledge of the falsity of, or failing to further investigate despite having reasonable grounds to believe there is a violation, will also be suspended from office for a period of three months without pay.

The penalties are without prejudice to the liability that may be incurred under the Revised Penal Code and other existing laws.

The bill also allows any concerned citizen to report violations to the LTO, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the metropolitan coordinating council, or the engineering office of the local government unit (LGU) any motor vehicles parked on the streets, alleys, or pathways primarily used for pedestrian and motor vehicle traffic.

Velasco's proposal also tasks authorized personnel of the LTO, MMDA, metropolitan coordinating council, LGU engineering office and law enforcement agencies to conduct periodic ocular inspection for the purpose of strictly implementing the provisions of the law.—AOL, GMA News