We first tried cashless transactions on our tollways on December 1, 2020. Remember that? The whole world was busy fighting a deadly virus, and Filipino motorists were busy installing RFID on their vehicles. And now, more than four years later, we still haven’t experienced seamlessly functioning RFID readers on our expressways.

Sure, cashless tollbooths are everywhere, but many RFID readers are unreliable, resulting in misread accounts or unidentified tags altogether. This problem has been a consistent source of content for our Facebook page. For years, the Toll Regulatory Board has had no choice but to postpone and delay the actual application of cashless transaction on tollways.

And here we are again. The TRB has announced that the contactless collection of fees will now be mandatory starting March 15, 2025. Here is the text:

Following the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) issuance of its Department Order No. 2024-022 lifting DO No. 2021-003, or the Addendum to DO No. 2020-012, “Requiring Cashless or Contactless Transactions for All Vehicles Traveling on Toll Expressways,” the Toll Regulatory Board’s (TRB) issuance of the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of DOTr’s Department Order No. 2020-012, and after several months of dry-run implementation thereof, the Cashless/Contactless Transactions Program will be reimplemented starting March 15, 2025, on all toll expressways under the TRB’s jurisdiction. This program intends to optimize the use of all the toll lanes/plazas through the utilization of Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) System.

The board added:

Thus, starting March 15, 2025, all motor vehicles traveling along the toll expressways are mandatorily required to have a valid ETC device or Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sticker installed on them. Those motor vehicles without a valid ETC device or RFID sticker will nonetheless still be allowed to enter the toll lane/plaza, but shall be installed with an ETC device or RFID sticker at the designated space after the toll plaza, or the nearest installation site. However, the Land Transportation Office (LTO), through its deputized personnel, will issue against them either a temporary operator’s permit or a show cause order for violating the “No Valid ETC Device, No Entry” policy under the DOTr/LTO/TRB’s Joint Memorandum Circular No. 2024-001, and will be meted the corresponding penalty.

Immediately after, the toll operators sent us a “joint statement of toll concessionaires/operators on the reimplementation of Cashless/Contactless Toll Collection Policy at expressways”:

We, the toll concessionaires operating the country’s expressways, fully support the government’s initiative to reimplement the Cashless/Contactless Toll Collection Policy through Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 2024-001 issued by the DOTr, the LTO, and the TRB.

This policy plays a key role in easing traffic at toll plazas, improving safety and convenience for motorists, and optimizing expressway operations.

Based on the latest data from the TRB, 97% of expressway users already use an ETC device/RFID sticker for toll payments. With the reimplementation of the cashless/contactless toll collection policy, we encourage the remaining 3% of motorists who still pay in cash to switch to RFID for a faster, more efficient, and seamless toll experience.

Getting an RFID is simple and hassle-free. Installation is free, with no maintaining balance or minimum load required. Reloading is also easy and accessible through customer service centers, kiosks, banks, e-wallets, and other payment platforms, making it more convenient to manage your account.

To stay updated on transactions, we encourage motorists to update their contact details, including e-mail address and mobile number, to receive account notifications and monthly statements. The official RFID mobile apps are also available for quick balance checks, reloading, and toll fee calculations.

As toll operators, we are committed to continuously improving our systems to provide safer, faster, and more convenient expressway travel for all.

Well, the full support of toll operators is expected. They need to cooperate to (make government look good) prove that the authorities are monitoring their performance. As the TRB said:

To complement the subject program, the toll expressway concessionaires, operators, and RFID service providers are mandated under the 2024 Minimum Performance Standards and Specifications (MPSS) to conform and comply with the enumerated Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the Toll Collection System, as well as other operations-related matters. Failure to do so will warrant the imposition against them of the corresponding penalties and other sanctions.

What are the penalties and the sanctions awaiting the toll operators if the system continues to malfunction? No idea. Hopefully, it won’t be a mere slap on the wrist.