DOTr Sec. Tugade requests PMVICs to adjust fees

MANILA: Secretary Arthur P. Tugade of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) made an appeal to the private vehicle inspections centers (PMVICs) to reduce fees being collected from private motorists for vehicle inspection before registering with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and to waive their re-inspection fee collection for at least one year.

For every vehicle that undergoes testing, PMVICs obtain P1,800 and another P900 if the vehicle does not pass the first series of assessments and are recommended for re-testing.

In his petition, Secretary Tugade requested that PMVICs should cut back on their fees in accordance to the rates that the Private Emission Testing Centers (PETCs) offer, which is within the range of about P500 to P800.

Secretary Tugade appealed upon awareness of the sentiments of Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go about finding a balance between maintaining road safety through the prevention of unroadworthy vehicles from being listed with the LTO, and the financial challenges that numerous vehicle owners are experiencing at present because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Secretary Tugade expressed, “Ako ay umaapela at nakikiusap sa mga PMVIC owners. Ipakita at iparamdam ninyo ang pakikiisa ninyo sa administrasyong Duterte. Babaan ninyo ang inspection fee ninyo, i-level ninyo sa kasalukuyang singil ng mga PETC, at i-waive ninyo ang reinspection fee habang may pandemya (I am appealing and requesting the PMVIC owners to show support for the Duterte administration. Lower your inspection fees and level your current charges for the PETC, and waive the re-inspection fee while the pandemic is ongoing). With this, we are not sacrificing the more stringent process of ensuring vehicles are checked for roadworthiness prior to registration. But we are also avoiding putting additional burdens on motorists.”

He added, "The palace said, let us strike a balance between public safety and the needs of our countrymen, especially now that we are in a pandemic. Nakikiisa ako sa layuning ito ng ating pamahalaan (I am one with our government in this goal). I will work for and with them to achieve this purpose.”

For the past four decades, the idea of motor vehicle inspection system (MVIS) before the registration of a vehicle with the LTO had been floated.

It is only during the current Duterte administration that the MVIS became operational through the cooperation and help of accredited PMVICs.

The need for appropriate testing to determine vehicle roadworthiness before registration has been attributed to the overwhelming number of registered vehicles involved in road accidents.

Before the PMVICs became operational, vehicles being listed at the LTO are only examined for conformity with the Clean Air Act through a smoke emission test conducted at PETCs.

In 2019, a total of 121,771 road accidents were documented in Metro Manila based from the Metro Manila Accident Recording and Analysis System (MMARAS).

An average of 334 road collisions were also noted regularly. From this, 20,466 were injured while 372 people have died. 

Aside from a smoke emission test, vehicles that are being examined at the PMVIC go through an automated three -stage system to determine roadworthiness at 73 inspection sites.

In contrast to the old vehicle inspection scheme which the LTO conducted visually, the examination of vehicles at a PMVIC involves automation with minimal human interference. The testing equipment also needs biometric access (through the fingerprint of the operator) to activate the operation.

The results of the assessment conducted at a PMVIC are delivered real time to the local server of the PMVIC and to the information technology (IT) system of the LTO.

The manipulation and corruption of the PMVIC results is also minimized, if not eliminated, since the whole vehicle inspection procedure is completely recorded by means of closed circuit television cameras (CCTVs), said the DOTr.

Image from the Department of Transportation (DOTr)

Also read: VICOAP looks to up roadworthiness standards and safety on the road