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MANILA - The Skyway management on Wednesday vowed an overhaul before relaunching a new toll collection system that was intended to speed up payments, but slowed traffic instead.

The new system was implemented last Saturday but was suspended on Tuesday after northbound motorists complained that it made them spend 2 more hours on the road, arrive late for work or miss their flights at NAIA.

"Lilinisin muna ang sistema bago ibalik ulit," Bert Suansing, spokesperson of the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB), told DZMM.

(We will clean up the system before reviving it.)

The new toll collection system required motorists from Alabang, Sucat and Bicutan to stop twice along Skyway: first, at the payment booth; and again at a new toll booth near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, where they would surrender their payment slips.



Regulators failed to anticipate that in surrendering the payment stubs, the motorists would have to queue again alongside travelers from Laguna and Filinvest who have not yet paid the toll, admitted Suansing.

The TRB will create an opening in the barrier of the new toll plaza so that paid motorists can just proceed to a counter-flow lane instead of lining up again, he said.

For the meantime, Skyway will revert to its old "pay as you enter" scheme for private vehicles, said Suansing.

Only Class 2 vehicles like buses and delivery vans would be required to pass through the new runway toll plaza for cash payments, he added.

"Humihingi kami ng paumanhin kung nagambala ang mga motorista natin, nabigla ang iba sa bagong sistemang ipinatutupad," Suansing told DZMM.

"Talagang inaayos natin iyan, hinahanapan ng paraan."

(We apologize if our motorists were inconvenienced, surprised by our new system. We are fixing it, trying to find solutions.)