Vehicles sans RFID barred from expressways by Nov. 2

FILE: Nichols Toll Plaza, Southbound (Photo by Patrickroque01 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

MANILA – As the country continues its push towards cashless transactions in all modes of transportation, an official of the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) said vehicles not equipped with an RFID sticker beginning Nov. 2 would be barred entry in toll expressways.

In a virtual presser on Friday, TRB executive director Abraham Sales said toll operators would be required to set up booths before the entrances of expressways to check for and provide RFID stickers to all passing vehicles.

He cited Department of Transportation (DOTr) Department Order 2020-012 issued on Aug.13 that declared the mandatory use of cashless transactions at tollways starting Nov. 2, with the goal of limiting interpersonal interactions to combat the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019.

“Yung intensyon ng (The intention of the) department order, 100 percent cashless, they will not be allowed to enter the expressway,” Sales said.

He said vehicles that managed to sneak inside an expressway without an RFID could face possible penalties.
To date, 75 percent of all toll gates operated by the Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) are already RFID compliant, with plans to reach 100 percent compliance by Nov. 2, according to Roberto Bontia, MPTC South Management Corporation president and general manager.

The MPTC’s EasyTrip system has now more than 800,000 subscribers and almost 40 percent of all vehicles passing through MPTC tollways use RFID transactions, compared to 32 percent back in May, Bontia added.

To help ease the shift into mandatory RFID transactions in MPTC expressways, he said mobile RFID installation teams provide 300 to 400 RFIDs per day, free of charge aside from a PHP200 to PHP500 initial load.

He noted that EasyTrip RFID stickers are also sold online with instructions for self-installation at Shopee, an online retailer.

MPTC is the operator of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and the Subic Clark Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX); in South of Manila, it operates the Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) and the Cavite Laguna Expressway (CALAX).