In order to address the rising cases of road accidents, police and city traffic enforcers will strictly implement the ban on the use of the inner lanes of major roads here by tricycles and motorcycles.

Major Jovenson Bayona, operations chief of the city police office, said Monday the move is in line with the implementation, starting Tuesday, of the “Oplan Ligtas at Linis Kalsada” program.

Bayona said the initiative mainly aims to promote proper discipline among motorists and residents to ensure road safety.

It complements the road clearing campaign being implemented by local government units, which was earlier ordered by President Rodrigo Duterte.

In coordination with the city government’s traffic management unit, Bayona said they will implement the provisions of Republic Act 4136 or the Land Transportation Code on the proper use of the inner and outer lanes of major roads and the national highways.

The implementation is also supported by the city’s land transport and traffic code, which prohibits tricycles, motorcycles and other slow-moving motor vehicles from using the inner lanes of the highways, he said.

“This is to discipline drivers of these vehicles who continue to use the inner lanes despite the prohibition,” Bayona said in a radio interview.

Citing their records, he said the number of road crashes in the city involving motorcycles and tricycles is on the upward trend since 2017.

He said they recorded a total of 2,317 road crashes in 2017, with about half of the cases happening on national roads.

The figures increased to 2,410 in 2018 and 1,525 from January to August this year.

“Majority of these cases involved motorcycles and happened in the national highway and other major roads,” he said.

Bayona appealed to motorcycle and tricycle drivers to “make it a habit” to use the outer lanes of the roads to avoid penalties and accidents. (PNA)