Metro Manila mayors eye Alert Level 1 as MMDA mulls morning number coding

Metro Manila mayors are seeking to put the National Capital Region under a more relaxed Alert Level 1 starting next month.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Officer-in-Charge and General Manager Atty. Romando Artes said that local chief executives have all agreed to lower the alert level in the region, as seen in Metro Manila Council (MMC) Resolution No. 22-06.

According to him, the resolution was already sent to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID).

“The basis of the MMC to ease the restrictions in the region is to open up the economy to ensure job generation,” Artes said.

 “The NCR's positivity rate for COVID-19 is now at 4.64 percent, way below the five percent standard of the World Health Organization," he added.

The proposal cited the Department of Health (DOH) COVID-19 situationer in Metro Manila last February 21, stating that the region accounts for 32 percent of the confirmed cases nationwide.

The resolution also showed that only one of the 17 cities remains at moderate risk classification while the rest are already considered low risk based on the two-week growth rate and average daily attack rate.

Further, the MMC noted that the Health Care Utilization Rate (HCUR) and COVID-19 Bed Utilization Rate in the country's capital region are on a downward trend and equally stand at 24.8 percent.

The MMDA general manager also gave the assurance that the mayors in Metro Manila are “ready and fully capable of implementing the IATF-prescribed health and safety protocols under COVID-19 Alert Level 1.”

He also shared that amid the caravans and other political activities, no notable increase in COVID-19 cases was recorded in the past two weeks. 

Meanwhile, Artes bared that the MMDA is studying the possibility of implementing a modified version of the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program (UVVRP or more commonly known as number coding scheme) during rush hour in the morning.

Currently, the vehicle restriction program is implemented from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and only covers private vehicles.

“We are studying to widen the coverage of our modified number coding scheme from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. I have met with the district heads of our Traffic Discipline Office. Based on their assessment, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., light traffic situation is observed on major thoroughfares,” Artes said.

Artes said that the agency is not looking at imposing the number coding scheme for the whole day due to lack of public transportation.

Photos from Ruben D. Manahan IV, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority

Also read:

MMDA suspends number coding on Dec. 24, 30, 31

DOTr: 70% PUV capacity in NCR stays, MM mayors to restrict movement of unvaccinated

Number coding still lifted amid manageable traffic — MMDA