BAGUIO Mayor Benjamin Magalong has signed into law an ordinance empowering the city’s 128 barangays to start collecting parking fees in their jurisdiction.
Under City Ordinance No. 04, Series of 2022, barangays may begin charging fees for parking facilities either owned or managed by the barangays, with rates based on approved amounts during barangay general assemblies.
The ordinance also prescribes fees and assessment powers for on-street parking within the barangays’ jurisdictions. Day parking under the ordinance is from 7:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M., where the rates can range from P35 to P50 per slot for the first three hours, plus P10 more per subsequent hour, while overnight parking from beyond 7:00 P.M. to 7:00 A.M. of the following day has a flat rate of P100.
The ordinance gives barangays the authority to set a scheme for fee collection scheduling, whether daily or otherwise, as long as the barangays continue to ensure that parking is on a first-come, first served basis.
Barangays are also not held liable for losses and damage to parked vehicles in their parking areas.
It also disallows barangays from imposing or collecting fees on public utility vehicle staging and loading areas, parks, government facilities, national roads, and roads within the perimeter of the central business district, with exceptions based on the City Engineering Office – Traffic and Transportation Management Division (CEO-TTMD) designations.
Barangays, under the ordinance, can set parking spaces for the use of their officials, clients, and employees within barangay hall and office premises, but are forbidden from otherwise setting exclusive parking spaces for individuals anywhere else.
Fees from parking under the ordinance go into the exclusive fund of the barangays.
