Distracted
Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito said that the new rules as released by the DOTr were very confusing.
As a regular driver, Ejercito said that the rules regarding placement of phones for use in navigation are practically incomprehensible.
The officials of the DOTr and its line agencies such as the LTO have been coming out with conflicting statements that have caused confusion among motorists about whether or not they could use these apps as designed and exactly where their phones should be placed inside their vehicles.
Motoring writers and websites have shown some examples of where the phones could be placed in order to use the navigation From Page 11 apps.
Some of the DOTr officials have stated that the phones could be placed somewhere beneath the dashboard.
LTO chief Edgar Galvante, however, said that the screens of the phones should be turned off while using the navigation apps and that the motorists should just rely on the audio turn-by- turn prompts.
Ejercito said that there should be no prohibition on using navigation apps even with the screen on.
“The IRR should be reviewed. What should be prohibited is the use of gadgets while driving, like calling and texting. Use of gadgets as navigational aids should be allowed,” he added.
Ejercito said that the best thing to do now is for the agencies concerned to suspend the implementation of the law until the issues with the IRR are ironed out.
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III agreed that the rules were a bit overboard and that the IRR should be reviewed.
The MMDA is part of the DOTr’s inter-agency council on traffic (IACT) along with the Land Transportation Office (LTO), Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and the Highway Patrol Group (HPG).
A police official said motorists may still use navigational apps like Waze and Google Maps on their cellphones or gadgets while driving, provided that the device’s hands-free function is used and it does not interfere with the driver’s line of sight so as not to violate the Anti-Distracted Driving Act.