Policy and purpose
- Republic Act No. 10916 declares the State policy to maintain at all times the safety and protection of the public.
- The State policy requires a proactive and preventive approach to secure the safety of passengers and the public on roads and highways.
- The Act aims to safeguard passengers and the public from speed-related road accidents that cause fatalities and damage to property.
Definitions for the Act
- A “Closed van” means a large motor vehicle, usually with an enclosed cargo space, designed to carry goods for commercial purposes or engaged in transporting personal effects.
- A “Covered vehicle” means any closed van, hauler or cargo trailer, PUV, shuttle service, or tanker truck under the Act, and other vehicles as the DOTC may later determine and include for application of the Act.
- A “Covered vehicle” excludes taxicabs and public utility jeepneys (PUJs), without prejudice to DOTC review after one (1) year on whether to include them.
- A “Hauler” or “Cargo trailer” means a motor vehicle designed for transporting heavy or oversized loads or cargoes.
- A “Public utility vehicle (PUV)” means a motor vehicle considered as a public transport conveyance or common carrier duly registered with the LTO and granted a franchise by the LTFRB.
- A “Shuttle service” means any motor vehicle provided by government or private company or establishment to transport employees to and from work premises or to clients between designated origin and destination, carrying not less than four (4) passengers.
- A “Speed limiter” means a device used to limit the top speed of a vehicle through mechanical, electronic, or communications systems (or combinations) or similar devices capable of performing the same function.
- “Tampering” means recalibrating, reprogramming, resetting, or reconfiguring a speed limiter installed in a covered vehicle and already sealed by the LTO or LTFRB after due inspection so as to circumvent its functions or intended purposes.
- Tampering also includes calibrating, reprogramming, resetting, or reconfiguring a speed limiter installed in any covered vehicle without the supervision of the LTO or LTFRB as required under Section 5 of the Act.
- A “Tanker truck” means a motor vehicle designed for transporting or carrying gas, oil, or liquid, flammable, combustible, corrosive, or hazardous materials or substances in bulk.
Coverage and mandatory installation
- Republic Act No. 10916 requires that no covered vehicle, after the Act’s effectivity, may run on any road, street, or highway in the Philippines without a standard speed limiter that complies with standards and specifications approved by the DOTC.
- For vehicles already registered with any appropriate agency, compliance must be completed not later than eighteen (18) months from the Act’s effectivity.
Registration and franchise conditioned on speed limiter
- Republic Act No. 10916 prohibits the LTO from registering any covered vehicle that does not have the standard speed limiter installed and set in compliance with Sections 4 and 6.
- Republic Act No. 10916 prohibits the LTFRB from granting a franchise to any covered vehicle that does not have the standard speed limiter installed and set in compliance with Sections 4 and 6.
Standards, setting, inspection, and accreditation
- The DOTC must, in accordance with acceptable international standards, determine the specifications of the speed limiters allowed to be installed in covered vehicles.
- The LTO or LTFRB must supervise and inspect the setting of the speed limiter corresponding to the maximum allowed in the route plied by a particular covered vehicle.
- The DTI must accredit persons, establishments, or institutions producing, manufacturing, or distributing speed limiters that comply with the specifications and standards determined by the DOTC.
- The DTI must issue a certification attesting compliance with such specifications and standards as a prerequisite for registration.
Implementing rules and regulations
- The DOTC, in coordination with the LTO, LTFRB, DTI, and the Department of Science and Technology, and in consultation with private stakeholders, must formulate and promulgate the implementing rules and regulations within sixty (60) days from the Act’s effectivity.
Prohibited acts and penalties
- A driver operating a covered vehicle, or an owner or operator who allows the driver to operate without the required speed limiter, must pay a fine of PHP 50,000.
- The same PHP 50,000 fine applies to the driver, owner, or operator who operates or allows a person to operate a covered vehicle with a nonfunctioning or tampered speed limiter.
- For a first offense of any violation under the immediately preceding rules, the offender must face both the applicable fine and:
- suspension of the driver’s license for one (1) month, or
- suspension of the motor vehicle’s franchise for three (3) months, depending on the offender.
- For a second offense, the driver’s license suspension is three (3) months or the franchise suspension is six (6) months, in addition to the applicable fines.
- For any subsequent offense, the driver’s license suspension results in revocation, or the franchise is suspended for one (1) year, in addition to the applicable fines.
- Any person found guilty of tampering must be punished with imprisonment of not less than six (6) months but not more than three (3) years, and a fine of PHP 30,000.
- The Act’s penalty provisions apply without prejudice to criminal prosecution or civil action under existing applicable laws.
Appropriations and separability
- The initial amount necessary to implement the Act must be charged against the current year’s appropriation of the DOTC.
- Thereafter, amounts necessary for continued implementation must be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.
- If any provision of Republic Act No. 10916 is held invalid or unconstitutional, the remaining provisions continue in full force and effect (separability clause).
Repeals and effectivity mechanics
- Republic Act No. 10916 repeals, amends, or modifies all laws, decrees, executive orders, or parts thereof inconsistent with its provisions (repealing clause).