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Thursday, June 15, 2006
PB asked to resolve load limit at North expressway
HELPLESS over the continued indifference of the North Luzon Expressway (Nlex) management on their plea to increase the allowable load capacity for vegetable delivery vehicles, the Benguet truckers has finally sought the Provincial Board's (PB) intervention to remedy the problem.
The Benguet Truckers and Traders Association Inc. (BTTAI) is seeking legislative assistance to convince the Nlex management to consider the plight of the group, who has been complaining over the reduction on the volume of vegetables allowed to pass the expressway.
BTTAI representatives appeared before members of the PB last Wednesday, asking that the body to institute actions to persuade the Nlex management to either exempt vegetable trucks from the load limit imposition or increase the load limit.
The group said the vegetable industry is suffering from Nlex operation because the volume of vegetables hauled for the Manila area and other provinces has been decreased.
Because of the imposition of the new load limit, which is seven to 11 tons and 10 to 13.5 tons for six-wheel and 10-wheel trucks, respectively, a huge volume of agricultural commodities is left unsold at the La Trinidad vegetable trading post.
Before Nlex, a six-wheel truck is allowed to load a minimum of 10 to a maximum of 16 tons of vegetables, while a 10-wheel truck could load 20 to 28 tons of vegetables.
With the new load imposition, a minimum of 145,470 to a maximum of 221,325 tons of agricultural crops is considered unsold in a year. This volume, multiplied by the average selling price of vegetable at P11.6 per kilo would cost around P1,687,452,000 to P2,567,370,000.
The traders said the vegetable industry is losing a huge amount in one year.
Since Nlex started its operations last year, traders and truckers made several requests for the management to raise its load limit to at least conform with the limit allowed by the public works department but this was never granted.
A dialogue was conducted between the two groups late last year but the traders were not able to convince the Nlex management to change its position.
The PB, meanwhile, asked BTTAI to furnish the body documents that could be utilized as basis in coming up with an action to help remedy the concern, such as a listing of the load allowed by the DPWH and the memorandum of agreement (MOA) entered into by the National Government and Nlex on the operations of the thoroughfare.
Nlex is supervising the expressway by virtue of a MOA forged during the administration of then President Fidel Ramos. (JC)
(June 15, 2006 issue)
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