Metro Manila Council passes resolution banning e-bikes on major roads

The Metro Manila Council (MMC) on Wednesday passed a resolution banning electric bikes / trikes on national roads under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).

The MMC is one of the governing boards and policymakers of the MMDA, along with the president of the Metro Manila Vice Mayors League and the president of the Metro Manila Councilors League.

MMDA acting chairman Romando Artes said that the resolution will be effective by April since the guidelines are still being drafted prior to publication.

Below is the list of national roads where e-bikes / trikes will be prohibited:

Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue (Edsa)
C.M. Recto Avenue, Manila
President Quirino Avenue, Manila
Araneta Avenue, QC
Katipunan/C.P. Garcia, QC
Southeast Metro Manila Expressway
Roxas Boulevard, Manila / Pasay / Paranaque
Taft Avenue, Manila / Pasay
South Luzon Expressway (SLEX)
Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong / Pasig
Ortigas Avenue, Mandaluyong / Pasig
Magsaysay Boulevard/Aurora Boulevard, QC / Manila
Quezon Avenue/Commonwealth Avenue, QC
A.Bonifacio Avenue, Manila, QC
Rizal Avenue, Manila
Del Pan/Marcos Highway/McArthur Highway
Elliptical Road, QC
Mindanao Avenue, QC
Marcos Highway

Each local government unit in Metro Manila will also craft their respective ordinances on the ban on e-bikes / trikes.

Violators will be fined P2,500, Artes said.

Their units will also be impounded if they are not able to present a driver’s license upon apprehension, he added.

According to Artes, there were 554 e-vehicle-related accidents and two deaths logged last year.

“Dumarami ‘yung gumagamit [ng e-vehicle] at parami nang parami ‘yung masasabi nating reckless driver,” he said.

(The users of e-vehicles are increasing, and we’re seeing more and more of what we can call reckless drivers.)

On February 15, MMDA and other government agencies also conducted a meeting to discuss the creation of a unified regulation for e-vehicles.

Among the concerns raised during the meeting were minors driving e-vehicles on national roads, driving without helmets or protective gear, and driving in the middle of highways.

PHOTO: A traffic enforcer from San Fernando’s City Public Order and Safety Coordinating Office in Pampanga flags down a driver of an electric tricycle along the national road in San Fernando in this photo taken on Tuesday. —PHOTO COURTESY OF CPOSCO