On paper, Jose Arturo “Jay Art” Tugade is the executive director of the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB). In person, he is unmistakably a man on a mission — one who believes mobility is not just about roads but about dignity, efficiency and time. His language is technical, but his purpose is simple: get Filipinos where they need to be — faster.
Before stepping into his post at the TRB, Tugade found his footing in government service through two of the country’s largest transportation agencies.
At the Land Transportation Office (LTO), he helped implement operational reforms designed to streamline licensing and vehicle registration.
Later, at the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), he was involved in administrative and logistical management of one of the country’s most complex transport gateways.
Those roles sharpened his grasp of public service under pressure — a skill set he would need as he now oversees every toll road in the Philippines.
At the TRB, Tugade is navigating a system that inefficiencies and motorist frustration have historically plagued. And yet, he speaks about toll operations not as a burden, but as a long-overdue opportunity for modernization.
“We are studying the multi-link free flow program, which is a manner of toll collection where we do away with physical toll plazas.”
“Instead, gantries will be installed, which will read the vehicles and deduct the toll fare. This is one of the initiatives we are working on at the TRB, and we hope to finalize it and roll it out sooner rather than later,” he said.
Unified road ahead
Just last week, the TRB marked a milestone with the official launch of the unified RFID system, a long-awaited upgrade that allows motorists to travel across all expressways with a single RFID account. The launch, Tugade said, is a significant breakthrough.
The TRB, which oversees all tollway operators in the country, hailed the unified RFID as the result of years of persistence. “Our objective here is to make the journey of our motorists faster, more comfortable, and more convenient,” Tugade told DAILY TRIBUNE.
For years, Filipino motorists were stuck in a confusing loop of incompatible RFID systems. Those driving north from Manila needed Easytrip for the North Luzon Expressway and the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway but had to switch to Autosweep for the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, operated by San Miguel Corp. Southbound travelers faced the same problem, with Cavitex and Coastal Road using a different system from SLEX, Skyway and Ninoy Aquino International Airport Expressway.
Those days are now numbered.
Under the One RFID program, Tugade said motorists can begin enrollment on 21 October, choosing either Autosweep or Easytrip as their primary RFID provider.
“After they go online or to the office of the RFID provider they have chosen, what they will do is remove the sticker they did not choose, and then the RFID sticker they have chosen will be evaluated. If their sticker is no longer readable or has some wear and tear, our operator will replace the RFID sticker free of charge, at no cost to motorists,” he said.
The TRB also announced that new RFID tags will be placed behind a vehicle’s windshield — replacing the old practice of sticking them on headlights.