Cashlanes are now officially gone. The Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), which oversees the operation of expressways, will not extend the deadline for cashless transactions (effective December 1, 2020).
To enforce this, the TRB has released Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) for the contactless toll scheme.
No minimum load, no expiry
Per the IRR, the government requires toll operators (Metro Pacific Toll Corporation and San Miguel Corporation) to have an initial minimum load of PHP 200 for Class 1 vehicles and PHP 400 for Class 2 and 3 vehicles at the motorist's expense. It will be up to the vehicle's owner if they want a larger amount for their initial load. Also, the new rules dictate that there shall be no minimum load and that the balance you have has no expiration.
Fines
Finally, fines have also been set for entering the expressway without an RFID or insufficient load.
The fine for lining up in RFID lanes without the tag falls under disregarding traffic signs, and you'll have to pay PHP 1,000 for that. There’s also a fine for lining up in an RFID lane instead of the stickering (sticker installation) lane.
If you enter the tollway with insufficient load to pay for the toll, that's another PHP 1,000 penalty, plus the toll fee. This violation falls under obstruction.
Finally, if you think you can just transfer the sticker from another vehicle, there’s also a fine for that. Possession of a false RFID sticker (wrong class), also carries a PHP 1,000 fine.
We also want to remind you to bring the RFID card with you. In the event that the sticker is not read, you will need to present the card to be scanned. Failure to do so may get you a violation.
Plan you trip
As such, we strongly advise you to plan your trip. For now, the sticker installation lanes are very long and take hours. Getting a sticker on the day of your travel is a very bad idea.
Plan your trip, get an RFID sticker for the tollways you will pass before your travel day.
Get your RFID sticker from authorized sources. You can get one at on-site stickering lanes or authorized off-site facilities.
Top-up your load as often as possible. End to end travel of one tollway can cost anywhere from PHP200-PhP300 for class 1 vehicles, per trip. We recommend keeping at least PhP500 balance. The money stored in the system has no expiry and will still be valid even after months, or years, pass.
