Vehicles banned on Banaue town roads

By Daniel Codamon

BANAUE, Ifugao -- This tourist town  is now implementing the “2014 Parking Ordinance” passed by the Sangguniang Bayan last February.

According to Vice Mayor Joel Bungallon, the ordinance authored by Councilor Hidalgo Tayaban, regulates parking areas of buses, vehicles and tricycles within Barangay Poblacion and providing parking fees, charges and  penalties for its violation.

The ordinance provides that no vehicle shall be parked along the national road within Barangay Poblacion from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. to avoid traffic jams.

However, emergency parking on the no parking area may be allowed for few minutes in case of necessity or emergency.

Parking fees shall be charged for every vehicle parked at the designated places at P50 for the first hour and P5 every hour thereafter.

For those parked at the municipal building, they will be charged P30 for the first hour and P10 every hour after while parking area for delivery vans or vehicles parked shall be charged P100 per unit .

Vehicles parked overnight shall be  charged P150.00.

The ordinance provided booking fees for passenger buses and jeepneys.  Buses  bound to  Manila, Baguio and Quirino Province  are charged  P100 per unit;  P30 per unit for jeepneys bound  to  barangays  Batad, Banga-an, Anaba and Ducligan and to towns of Hungduan, Lagawe, and  Nueva Vizcaya, as well as those bound  for   Bontoc, Mountain Province and P20 for jeepneys and buses going to  barangays Gohang,Ujah, Viewpoint and Kinakin.

Any driver, operator of transport facility who violate provisions of this ordinance shall be imposed a fine of P1,000 for the first offense; P1,500 for second offense and revocation of permit or license for the third time.

Public officers of employees who violate this law will be meted administrative disciplinary action without prejudice to filing of civil or criminal action.

To effectively implement the ordinance, the mayor with the assistance of the police shall perform general supervision as well as the technical and administrative duties and functions.

Signboards are now displayed within parking areas to guide the drivers and motorists where they could park and load or unload their passengers.

Banaue is  famous for  the Ifugao  Rice Terraces considered as the "Eighth Wonder of the World" and declared  by the UNESCO  as a World Heritage Site.