Planning a ride up to Baguio City this weekend? If you're coming from Manila, one of the popular routes going to the Summer Capital is passing through the Province of La Union. Since 2018 however, the province started imposing the Provincial Ordinance No. 132-2018 or The High Visibility Vest (HI-VIS-VEST) Ordinance of 2018.
Under this provincial ordinance, all motorcycle riders of big and small bikes and their pillion; tricycle, bicycle, and electric bike (e-Bike) riders and also their pillion are required to wear a high-visibility vest when traveling at night time within the territorial jurisdiction of the province.
The Provincial Ordinance No. 132-2018 defines a high-visibility vest or Hi-Vis Vest as a “REFLECTIVE VEST that provides added visibility at night which one can simply slip on over the regular clothing to make the person more noticeable.” It does not, however, mention anything about the exemption of riding jackets or any motorcycle-riding specific clothing which already has built-in reflector strips or high-visibility colors on them.
The ordinance is effective daily at night time, between 6:00 PM until 6:00 AM, and when the visibility is poor due to bad weather.
Any motorcycle, tricycle, bicycle, or e-Bike riders caught violating this ordinance shall be fined PhP2,000 for the first offense, PhP3,000 for the second offense and PhP5,000 for the third and succeeding offenses or, imprisonment of not more than a year or BOTH, depending on the court's decision.
