“MOTORCYLE riders will soon be able to put their doubts and fears to rest.”

Thus assured Senate Majority Leader Francis ‘Tol’ Tolentino, as he lauded the Senate’s approval on third and final reading of Senate Bill No. 2555, amending Republic Act. No. 11235, or the ‘Doble Plaka Law’ during Monday’s session (July 29).

Senator Tolentino, principal sponsor of SBN 2555, expressed his gratitude to Senator JV Ejecito, the measure’s primary author and his co-sponsor, as well as other senators for their support in approving the bill aimed at protecting the welfare of millions of motorcycle riders.

“The current law, RA No. 11235, unfairly discriminated against our motorcycle riders, isolating and unfairly profiling them as potential perpetrators of illegal activities,” noted Tolentino.

“In addition, RA No. 11235 provided short window periods for the registration and transfer of ownership of motorcycles, failure to abide with which will amount to excessive fines and penalties,” he added.

The implementation of RA11235 was merely suspended, in accordance with a memo issued by the LTO dated July 1, 2020.

Following the bill’s passage, leaders of several riders groups met with Tolentino and Ejercito at the Senate to personally thank the senators for their support.

The organizations include: the Motorcycle Taxi Community; Riders of Valenzuela Federation; Kapatiran sa Dalawang Gulong (Kagulong); Ride Guardians; Philippine Advocates for Road Safety; Move It Riders Community; and Angkas Riders Community.

“With the passage of this amendatory law, motorcyclists will be able to focus more on road safety, instead of worrying about possible fines and penalties that could be meted out against them,” the senator emphasized.

The salient provisions of SBN 2555 are as follows:

•mandating an RFID sticker at the front side of the motorcycle instead of the additional plate required by the previous law;
•differentiating the registration process of new ownership from subsequent sale;
•adjusting the period of reporting lost number plate or RFID sticker;
•adjusting the penalties of fines and imprisonment to a more reasonable amount and period; and lastly,
•adjusting the transitory provision to June 30, 2025 for motorcycle owners not in conformity with the provisions of the law to renew their registration, and December 31, 2025 for LTO to produce, release, and issue the number plates as required by law.

“Indeed, this measure, if passed into law, will be a win for our motorcycle-riding kababayans,” he concluded.

As of 2023, official data indicate that there are 8.5 million registered motorcycles in the country. On the other hand, nearly half of all Filipino households own a motorcycle or tricycle, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.