LTO calls for suspension of No Contact Apprehension Policy   

While the No Contact Apprehension Policy (NCAP) is being steadily being adopted by more cities across the country as a traffic management solution, the Land Transportation Office or LTO wants to suspend its implementation. 

The LTO wants LGUs with NCAP to suspend its enforcement for the necessary reviews

LTO Chief Atty. Teofilo Guadiz III is calling on all local government units (LGUs) that already have NCAP in place to stop and review the policy first. This is in light of complaints from public utility vehicle operators who are the ones shouldering the penalties for violations committed by their drivers.  

He explained that under the law, the registered owner is presumed to be driving the vehicle at the time the violation was caught on camera. Following the principle of command responsibility, it is the vehicle’s registered owner who has to pay the penalty if it is involved in a traffic violation.    

Transport groups recently met with the LTO and LGUs over the issue [Image: Gani Oro FB page]

“Ito po ay pinag-aaralan namin ngayon. Tila po may kakulangan sa policy na maaaring kailangang repasuhin upang ang mismong drayber o nagmamaneho ng sasakyan ang dapat na managot sa paglabag. We will look into ways na dapat managot ay ang drayber,” he said. 

(We are studying this right now. It seems that this is a loophole in the policy that needs to be addressed so that only the driver of the vehicle is accountable for the violation. We will look into ways to hold the driver responsible.) 

The LTO clarifies that it is only a repository of traffic violations caught on camera by the NCAP 

Guadiz also wants to look into instances where the vehicle was already sold to another owner, but the transfer of ownership has not been registered with the LTO. This results in the recorded violation being placed on the record of the previous owner instead.

He emphasizes that the NCAP is primarily a project of the LGUs and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), and that the LTO merely releases alerts for vehicles with recorded violations. According to Guadiz, the NCAP has a noble purpose, but that there is still room for improvement to make it a more effective tool in managing traffic.  

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