Kiosk style vehicle inspection? Is that going to work?

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) is serious about implementing the Motor Vehicle Inspection System or MVIS. The agency even released a memo saying motorists must have their vehicles undergo inspection at a Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMIVC) near them. The big issue, however, is that there are a limited number of PMVICs in the country that -given the actual number of vehicles- probably wouldn't be able to cover all motor vehicles without delay.

The solve the potential issue of capacity, there seems to be a new concept brought that the LTO is looking at: Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Kiosks (PMVRK).

Yes, kiosks; like that stand you buy fast food from at the supermarkets. The LTO is currently looking a proof-of-concept for the said PMVRKs, meaning they want to see if it is feasible. But what exactly does the PMVRK offer?

According to the LTO, the PMVRK will “provide a scalable technological platform for offsite motor vehicle renewal of registration and renewal of driver's licenses to further reduce the processing time of these transactions, prevent graft and corruption, and further improve the agency's level of service delivery”. In addition, PMVRKs must have “software capable of integrating to the current LTO system via web Application Programming Interface”.

LTO looking at smaller motor vehicle inspection kiosks image

From our understanding, the PMVRK is effectively a PMVIC combined with an LTO satellite office since it can process the renewal of vehicle registration and driver's licenses. For reference, a PMVIC only inspects vehicles. You still have to go to the LTO to complete the registration.

Unfortunately, there are no details yet such as what inspections will be done. But since the agency calls them “kiosks”, they will be far smaller than PMVICs. This will allow them to open up and operate in more locations with tighter spaces, but unless they have some kind of ultra-compact specialized testing/inspection equipment, these kiosks will likely be limited to visual inspections. 

The proof-of-concept regarding PMVRKs will be held tomorrow, August 24, at the LTO Central Compound. The agency is also inviting interested participants to join.

Hopefully, we'll find out more about the new LTO-accredited “kiosk” by then. But for now, what do you think of the LTO conceptualizing the PMVRK? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.

land transportation office lto mvis pmvic