The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has followed through on its initiative to ban e-trikes from major thoroughfares. What was originally scheduled to start on December 1, 2025, is now in full effect.
As of today, January 2, 2026, e-trikes and e-quads are prohibited on EDSA, C5, Roxas Boulevard, and the Quirino Avenue-Magallanes segment of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX). Violators may incur fines, and their e-trike or light electric vehicle (LEV) could be impounded.
Penalizing LEV operators was once a gray area, but it looks like the LTO will now apply the same regulations used for other motor vehicle drivers—specifically, the rules of Republic Act No. 4136, or the Land Transportation and Traffic Code. Joint Administrative Order No. 2014-01, which outlines the fines for violating motorists, will also be applied to e-trikes.
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LTO chief Markus Lacanilao has assured that the proper agencies are also looking to help e-trike users find safer routes, and ones that do not disrupt the flow of traffic. “Naiintindihan natin na marami sa atin ang umaasa sa mga e-trike bilang paraan ng paglalakbay, kaya naman handa ang LTO na makipagtulungan sa mga lokal na pamahalaan at mga sektor ng industriya para bumuo ng mga ligtas at angkop na ruta para sa mga e-trike sa mga darating na araw.”
“Hinihikayat din po natin ang mga mamamayan na sumunod sa mga patakaran at makipagtulungan para mapanatili ang ligtas na daloy ng trapiko,” he continued.
The specific penalties and impounding durations have not been specified by the LTO or the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority. We’ll be sure to keep you posted when more updates come in.
