Despite the enforced truck ban on six-wheelers and up along Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA), the Bureau of Customs expressed confidence that it will not cause port congestion in its Manila yards.  

“The Bureau of Customs is optimistic amid the threat of port congestion in the resumption of the truck ban as the agency has been keeping the yard utilization rate within the desired level in alignment with the global standard rate which does not exceed 70 percent,” the bureau stated Tuesday.
 
It reported that during the period of December 1 to 13, the average yard utilization of Manila International Container Port (MICP) is at a “manageable level of 75 percent.”
 
After nine months, a total truck ban on six-wheelers and up from EDSA Magallanes in Pasay to North Avenue in Quezon City with window hours set on other major thoroughfares is enforced.
 
The truck ban, which started December 14, aims to address the increasing traffic volume in Metro Manila.
 
The Customs bureau said the reinstatement of the truck ban raised concerns from a group of truckers, contesting that it would lead to different problems such as increased congestion and a possible repeat of “the chaotic port situation that marred the years 2014 and 2018.”
 
With this the bureau allayed fears over the threat of port congestion, saying they have been closely working with shipping lines to prevent possible congestion.  
 
"To ensure the unhampered delivery of services and avoid possible port congestion, the Bureau is closely coordinating with shipping lines and terminal operators as our proactive role in averting the unlikely event of port congestion," Deputy Commissioner of Assessment and Operations Coordinating Group Edward James Dy Buco said.
 
Dy Buco added that the bureau has directed the Customs Container Control Division of each port to strictly ensure the loading out of empty containers while all assessment offices personnel are instructed to immediately process laden containers for prompt release to prevent them from piling up at the port.
 
“Despite its inevitable implications on the movement of goods, the Bureau of Customs ensures its stakeholders that it will maintain the ports in the manageable level and pre-empts the repetition of the 2014 and 2018 port congestion amid truck ban re-implementation,” Dy Buco said.
 
The bureau also reported that a Time-Release Study at the MICP to measure the actual average release time of goods showed that the actual customs clearance time for importation is two days, 10 hours, and three minutes from submission of goods declaration to issuance of clearance and three days, 13 hours, and 29 minutes on exportation.