MANILA - Skyway O&M said Thursday around 20 percent of motorists passing through its toll exit points are still without RFID stickers.
Manuel Bonoan, Skyway O&M Corp president, is urging motorists to have their vehicles installed with RFID tags within the Dec. 1 to Jan. 11 grace period, before the strict implementation of cashless payments in tollways.
“We encourage everyone to give it time to use RFID on vehicles so that the flow of traffic can continue. We will continue to do everything to accommodate everyone. In two weeks, it will surely shrink and shrink,” Bonoan said. in an interview on TeleRadyo.
(We encourage motorists to give time for the RFID installation for smooth travel. We continue RFID installation, and we see vehicles without RFIDs to be greatly reduced in two weeks.)
The Jan. 11 deadline refers to the cashless transactions, and not the RFID installation, Bonoan said, adding that installation operations will continue even after the deadline.
RFID tags can be installed in toll plazas which operate 24/7 and RFID sticker caravans.
It can be loaded in toll booths, loading stations in gas stations, and digital platforms such as GCash, PayMaya and ECPay, among others.
When motorists offer to pay in cash, Bonoan said tollway operators will accept them, but it will be loaded in an RFID tag to be installed in the vehicle.
After the grace period, motorists will have to load their RFIDs on their own, he added.
The move to go cashless is within the mandate of the Department of Transportation to contain the spread of COVID-19.