Precautionary measures at SMC tollways vs coronavirus threat

Heavy vehicular traffic stretching to 24 kilometers hounded motorists on the night of Sept. 26, 2019, on the South Luzon Expressway, from Alabang to the Eton exit in Santa Rosa City in Laguna province. (Photo by Richard A. Reyes / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

MANILA, Philippines —  San Miguel Corporation (SMC) on Saturday said that it will be exercising heightened safety measures in its tollways to combat the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

In a statement, SMC said that the safety measures will be practiced in its tolls at the South Luzon Expressway:

• Alcohol dispensers are available at the toll plazas and SMC Tollways facilities.

• Tellers and traffic personnel on duty are required to wear face masks and surgical gloves.

• Toll booths and patrol vehicles are strictly sanitized before and after each shift.

SMC Tollways also encouraged motorists to use the radio frequency identification (RFID) electronic toll payment facility to “reduce the risk of contamination.”

“Meanwhile, vital construction and maintenance work on our toll roads will continue,” SMC Tollways said.

To combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Rodrigo Duterte has placed the entire Metro Manila on “community quarantine.”

As of Saturday, the country’s number of COVID-19 cases soared to 64. Of the said number, six have died due to the disease that first broke out in Wuhan City in China. -By: Katrina Hallare

Edited by MUF