In February 2014, the City of Manila imposed a cargo truck ban at certain hours of the day to free Manila streets from the traffic congestion brought about by huge trucks and container vans moving to and from the Port of Manila every day. At first, this seemed to be a workable solution to the perennial traffic congestion faced by Manila residents and commuters. However, the unintended consequence of this seemingly rational local ordinance led to complaints and clamor of other stakeholders for a better approach to city traffic management. The truck ban led to even more congestion in the city streets, delay in delivery of goods, and accumulation of containers at the port. This situation served as a springboard for a system-wide study of the logistics industry in the Greater Capital Region. The study looks at the bigger picture--the need to understand the other important issues affecting transport and logistics, and to formulate appropriate policy responses.
