Mob Rule on the Road

There are times when the strength of a group or groups of people can be put to good use. Witness the popular revolution of 1986 when people trooped to EDSA and forced the ouster of then President Ferdinand Marcos. It was a glorious time for the country when people got together and when one can truly be proud to be a Filipino. It inspired people from other countries like Haiti to resort to "People Power" to unseat their dictators and install a new government.

Unfortunately, there are also times when People Power can be abused. Witness the blockage of the North Luzon Toll Way by truck drivers who are opposing the strict implementation of Republic Act 8794 of 2002 or the Motor Vehicle User’s Charge (MVUC) on Owners of All Types of Motor Vehicles and Other Purposes. The truck drivers blocked the lanes of the toll ways and caused a monstrous traffic jam to protest the strict implementation of the law by the Manila North Toll ways Corporation (MNTC) which manages the toll ways.

MNTC is simply implementing RA 8794, which defines the maximum load limit of 13.5 metric tons (13,500 kilograms) per axle for cargo trucks. This law is actually an improvement over the previous RA 4136 of 1965 which limits the maximum load at 8.0 metric tons (8,000 kilograms) per axle and is generous compared to the laws of other countries. So, if RA 8794 is an improvement over RA 4136, then why are the truckers protesting and why on the North Luzon Toll Way in particular?

You see, RA 8794 also defines the penalty for overloading, which is 25% of the MVUC and MNTC is the sole entity that is strictly monitoring the loads of truck passing through the weight bridges before entering the toll ways and penalizing those who are caught overloading. Duly authorized to implement the law, MNTC earned the ire of the truckers because they are the only ones who are seriously enforcing the law.

According to MNTC, they are doing this to reduce accidents caused by overloaded trucks as well as to reduce premature damage to the road surface of the toll ways. If you have ever driven on the old North Luzon Expressway when it was managed by another company, you can compare how much better the toll ways have become under the management of the MNTC. True, the toll rates have increased drastically but this is a small price to pay for safer, faster and more convenient road travel to the North and less wear and tear on your vehicles suspension and tires. Thus, to maintain their roads, MNTC has to actively enforce traffic laws and road regulations.

But in the eyes of the truckers, MNTC is just trying to make their lives difficult by enforcing the law. Many are blind to the truth that our road network around the country is in dire need of repairs and maintenance. While graft and corruption has taken its toll on our roads, overloaded trucks and buses have worsened the conditions of our already-substandard roads by constantly battering it with their excessive weight. Try driving from Allen to Calbiga in Samar, where the road is rough and the concrete slabs have shifted and you can see how heavily-laden trucks can damage roads. I was once riding a big bike on that road and when a cargo truck sped on the opposite direction, I felt the road vibrate from the weight of the passing truck. And of course, the truck driver is oblivious, if not blind, to all these concerns.

And this is another area that authorities should look into. Drivers of big rigs are noticeably becoming more oblivious to traffic laws, especially traffic lights. You can commonly find bus drivers and truck drivers going across an intersection even if the lights are red or making an illegal turn in a No Left Turn zone or illegally parking their big rigs or loading passengers in No Loading zones and causing traffic. Many bully their way around traffic just because they are driving a big vehicle.

I recently had an altercation with a driver of a Miescor truck one Saturday morning at their stock yard in Quezon City. I was driving my ’93 Sentra with my family and was about to turn left from Anonas Road into Kamias Road when a silver Honda CR-V turned left from Kamias into Anonas when our light turned green. To avoid a collision, I yielded to the Honda even though he was obviously making an illegal left turn. To my disdain, a Miescor truck carrying a long pole sped up and followed the CR-V even though their traffic light was red and my car has already inched into the intersection. I honked my horn to notify the truck driver of how close we were to a collision but he ignored me and continued to make the turn. After he made the turn and cleared the front of my car by only a fraction of an inch, he had the gall to give me a dirty finger.

This got me irked and I made a quick U-turn (much to the alarm of my wife) and chased the truck, which then made a wide and reckless U-turn to drive into the Miescor compound near the intersection. I stopped at the gate while the truck driver was about to drive in and he peered at me through his window and shouted "Anong problema mo, ha?!" (What’s your problem?!) The guard was courteous enough to ask the driver to apologize to me after I asked for the manager but the driver tried to glib his way out by saying that I tried to intimidate him and that I was trying to pick a fight. I admit I wanted to hit the guy because he was such a liar, but the situation turned comedic when he went into that often abused line "…ang hirap sa inyong mayayaman…" or how we rich people supposedly oppress the poor people like him.

Unfortunately, this mentality is what our country does NOT need right now. The poor think that they deserve all the breaks and the exemptions because they are poor and underprivileged. They are beginning to believe that the law should be bent just to accommodate them. Equally unfortunate is how the law enforcers themselves are beginning to fall for this line because most of them are also finding it difficult to make both ends meet. Witness the unabated violation of the law and certain rights in the name of the impoverished and the urban poor.

Factor in the politicians who use and abuse the urban poor for their own selfish purposes, and we’ve got a social war brewing in the long run. It is beginning to manifest itself on the road with the worsening driving habits of the "poor" drivers or those who are driving vehicles that they do not own and turning their ire on the "rich" drivers or those who drive their own vehicles, some of whom are fortunately still disciplined enough to follow road rules and traffic regulations. Unfortunately, the good drivers are beginning to be outnumbered by the "poor" drivers.

The truck drivers’ blockade on the North Luzon Toll Way, which inconvenienced millions of commuters and drivers for several hours, is the harbinger of bad things to come. It is the manifestation that their leaders have forgotten to respect the needs of the many when it outweighs the needs of the few. All they can think of are their own little selfish concerns and not the needs of other road users.

It’s about time that authorities need to put their foot down and enforce the law fully and correctly before things go from bad to worse. And before mob rule takes over.

James Deakin for president! Seriously, anyone who wants to run for public office can take on an anti-MAPSA platform and take home all the marbles. This is the first time that absolutely no one disagreed with our Backseat Driver columnist... Wow.

Your letter regarding the corruption of the MAPSA hit its mark! Is there something that can be done to solve this kind of injustice brought about by the MAPSA? — 09176218866

I totally agree with James Deakin’s article about the MAPSA and the vultures, este, towing trucks. Seems they have a quota and even if the car is parked properly, they still take advantage. — 09224732799

Good job Mr. Deakin! I’m with you. I guess Mr. Mayor should clean-up his turf first before dealing with a much bigger crook! What do you think, guys? — 09189005665

I have not yet been towed by the MAPSA but I hate them. They just power trip on helpless motorists. — 09178225288

Mr. Deakin is right, these MAPSA men are arrogant. It seems like they have their own world! — 09187058785

Of course, we also have other reactions and comments…

Is it true that Chinese carmaker Nexus will be entering the Philippine car market with the initial launch of the Hover SUV? Please feature it — 09164358799 (Yes, it’s true. Yes, we’ll feature it.)

Is leaded gasoline still being sold? Is Shell’s Velocity unleaded? — 09175231969 (If indeed leaded gasoline is still being sold, then we have criminals out there. Shell’s Velocity is indeed unleaded.)

With more and more people on to motorcycle riding for economy, can you feature pointers on safe motorcycle riding? 09266267902 (Trust our motorcycle guru Lester Dizon to write about safe motorcycle riding practices in the future. That’s a promise.)

Speak out, be heard and keep those text messages coming in. To say your piece and become a "Backseat Driver", text PHILSTAR<space>FB<space>MOTORING<space>YOUR MESSAGE and send to 2840 if you’re a Globe or Touch Mobile subscriber or 334 if you’re a Smart or Talk ’n Text subscriber or 2840 if you’re a Sun Cellular subscriber. Please keep your messages down to a manageable 160 characters. You may send a series of comments using the same parameters.