Vehicle inspection facility opens in SBMA

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Felicito Payumo announced this week that a modern motor vehicle inspection facility will officially open today at the Subic Freeport to certify to the roadworthiness and environmental compliance of imported vehicles.

The new facility, operated by the Vehicle Inspection and Testing Corporation (ViTEC), can perform the most thorough procedures in the motor vehicle inspection system (MVIS).

All vehicles, prior to initial and annual renewal of registration, are required to undergo inspection and testing as part of the provisions of RA 8749 or the Clean Air Act of 1999.

"Subic is honored to be the site of this first-ever MVIS facility in the Philippines," Payumo said.

In a memorandum of agreement signed in May this year, the SBMA pledged to provide the Land Transportation Office (LTO) the necessary assistance to ensure the strict and full implementation of national laws, rules and regulations pertaining to motor vehicles. Among such laws are the Clean Air Act, the Seat Belt Law and PNS 1994:1259 that set the standards and requirements for repositioning of right hand drive vehicles to left hand drive.

For its part, the LTO agreed to expand its operation within the Subic Bay Freeport Zone (SBFZ) through its extension office there to "cover all the necessary procedures/requirements to facilitate the immediate registration of imported motor vehicles while ensuring that the same are roadworthy and compliant with pertinent laws."

Since the year 2000, the Subic Freeport has seen increasing volumes of motor vehicle imports. In part, the Subic inspection plant is seen to address public concerns over the roadworthiness, safety and environmental compliance of these vehicles, many of which are second-hand and have original right-hand drive assemblies.

"The plant can test both passenger and cargo vehicles," said Henry Tan, a ViTEC executive. He added that the plant combines the best of American and German inspection technologies and is staffed by Japanese-trained technicians, many of whom have more than five years of experience in MVIS. He further said that their inspection system, which is computerized from the onset, can perform a full range of MVIS tests as may be required by the LTO as pre-registration requirements.

In 1997, the Board of Investments (BOI) listed the establishment of motor vehicle inspection facilities as a priority investment area for the private sector. "Soon after, we heeded the government’s call and registered with the BOI to put up such a facility," Tan said.