MANILA - The 60 kilometers per hour (kph) speed limit along EDSA and other main thoroughfares in Metro Manila is just a guide for now, a Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) official said Friday.

MMDA Traffic chief Col. Bong Nebrija admitted that the 60 kph speed limit adopted by the MMDA, cannot be enforced, especially at night, due to lack of manpower and technology

"Sinet namin 'to para maging guide ng mga motorista (We set this speed limit to be a guide for motorists), that’s the safe speed limit for you. So just abide it, with or without the enforcers themselves on the ground," Nebrija told radio DZMM.

"Sinasabi nila how can we enforce this at night eh wala naman kaming enforcers at night, may night capability ba ang speed gun niyo? Ako na nagsasabi wala po," Nebrija added.

(They are saying how can we enforce this at night when we don't have enforcers at night, and does our speed guns have night capability? I will tell you, our speed guns don't have.)

Nebrija said they set the "speed limit" because most of the metro's roads are not safe for speeding vehicles.

"Marami po sa ating road condition di na po safe for high speed (Many of our road conditions are not safe for high speed). Pangalawa, yung 60 kph po that could hold you not to go over the opposite direction just in case you lose control," he added.

"In case mawalan ka ng brake or something gone wrong with your car, pag nakabunggo ka sa harapan, at 60 kph it will not be instantly fatal. Minimal ang damage. At 60 kph you can use all the braking power that you have."

(In case you lose your brake, or something went wrong with your car, if you bump into something, at 60 kph it will not be instantly fatal. Damage is minimal. At 60 kph you can use all the braking power that you have.)

Nebrija, meanwhile, said the implementing rules and regulations for MMDA Regulation No. 19-001 will set the speed limit for trucks and buses, which were exempted from the 60-kph speed limit.

MMDA earlier said motorists who violate the speed limit will be fined P1,000 for every offense.

• MMDA imposes P1,000 fine vs speed limit violators along EDSA, other roads

The government has eyed various solutions to address the worsening traffic, especially on the 23-kilometer long EDSA, the busiest thoroughfare in Metro Manila. Among these were the ban of driver-only cars in EDSA during rush hour and the no-window color-coding scheme.

Vehicular traffic in Manila is among the worst in the world, according to data from traffic and navigation application Waze.