No ban on provincial buses on Edsa鈥攆or now.
So ruled the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC), which ordered the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to stop the implementation of its proposed provincial bus ban, days before the agency was set to pilot test it to decongest traffic on the capital鈥檚 busiest thoroughfare.
Insufficient consultations
In a 25-page decision released on Friday, Quezon City RTC Branch 223 Judge Caridad Walse-Lutero said both the MMDA and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) seemed to have abused their police powers when they amended the routes of provincial buses and ordered the closure of provincial bus terminals along Edsa without sufficiently consulting the ban鈥檚 stakeholders.
The injunction stemmed from an appeal filed by several provincial bus operators saying that the ban, which prohibits their buses from entering Metro Manila via Edsa, would severely affect their 鈥渓ivelihoods.鈥�
Incorrect conclusion
The proposed ban is propped up by the LTFRB鈥檚 Memorandum Circular No. 2019-31, which amends the buses鈥� routes to end at interim terminals on the metro鈥檚 fringes, and Metro Manila Council Resolution No. 2019-2, which enjoins city governments to close down bus terminals along Edsa.
Lutero鈥檚 decision also quoted the LTFRB鈥檚 own data and used it against the agency. The LTFRB claimed that buses occupied a third of Edsa鈥檚 road space, while private cars constituted 72 percent of the road traffic.
鈥淚t would seem that the conclusion reached by the LTFRB that provincial buses are the main reason for the traffic is incorrect,鈥� the judge said.
鈥淭he closure of the plaintiffs鈥� terminals has far-reaching effects. It would affect not only their respective businesses, but their respective contracts with others,鈥� Lutero added. 鈥淲hile as a rule, the right to income or earning does not prevail over public welfare, in [this] case, the court has not yet been presented with a clear basis or sufficient justification for the issuances.鈥�
The court ruling has placed in limbo the dry run of the proposed ban scheduled on Aug. 7, said MMDA traffic chief Bong Nebrija.
Traffic-easing proposals
While he promised to abide by the court order, the traffic czar expressed worries that it could undermine similar traffic measures proposed by the MMDA, such as the revival of the high-occupancy vehicle policy.
鈥淲e will continue to seek the advice of our lawyers,鈥� Nebrija said. 鈥淏ut this is just so frustrating. How can we know if a policy is right if we never try it out, if we always want to have it suspended?鈥�