THE Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) will implement various interventions to ease traffic congestion in light of the upcoming rehabilitation of Edsa.
In a press conference on Monday, May 26, 2025, Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said among the interventions that will be implemented is the waiving of toll payments in several parts of Skyway Stage 3 beginning in July or August to encourage motorists to use it instead of Edsa.
He said 100 additional buses will also be deployed in Edsa bus carousel to encourage the travelling public to commute instead of bringing their own cars to reduce volume.
Dizon said there will also be additional four-car train sets on Metro Rail Transit 3 (MRT 3), which ply along the whole stretch of Edsa from North Avenue in Quezon City to Baclaran in Pasay City.
He said X-ray scanners in all stations of MRT 3 will also be removed to do away with long queues.
For the part of the MMDA, chairman Romando Artes said they will implement a 24-hour odd-even scheme, which will only be observed along Edsa.
He said vehicles with license plates ending in odd numbers or 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 are not allowed along Edsa on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays while cars with plates ending in even numbers or 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 are prohibited on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
There will be no odd-even scheme during Sundays.
This scheme will begin on June 16.
“Kung maglilibre ang Skyway ay makaka-reduce tayo ng between 10 to 20 percent volume sa Edsa. Kung sasamahan ‘yan ng odd-even scheme na additional 40 percent, ine-expect natin na mas bibilis ang daloy ng traffic at hindi magkakaron ng carmageddon sa Edsa, at tataas ang travel speed,” Artes said.
Provincial buses, trucks, and other big vehicles will also be temporarily banned from entering Edsa from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Artes said there will be an exclusive lane for motorcycles, and bike lane separators along Edsa will also be removed.
He said they will also intensify the clearing operations in alternate routes to ease traffic flow.
The government aims to complete the Edsa rehabilitation by 2027. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)