MRT aims to ease congestion at North Ave station MANILA -- The Metro Rail Transit (MRT) is now enforcing a new crowd control scheme, wherein only batches of 500 people are allowed to ride a train at a time. Speaking to radio dzMM on Wednesday, MRT general manager Al Vitangcol III said the new system is being implemented so that passengers waiting in succeeding stations will also have the chance to board the trains. "Nagsimula ito nung Lunes. Ang ginawa natin dito sa North Avenue station e ginawa nating by batch, so ang allowed lang nating maghintay doon sa mismong platform ng tren ay 500 people. Kapag nakasakay na yung 500 people sa dumating na tren, saka pa lang natin i-aallow na umakyat ang next 500 people," Vitangcol explained. He said that the new system will discourage commuters from flocking to the starting point of the train route, which is North Avenue for southbound passengers. "Ang nangyayari kasi dati yung mga pasahero na galing sa ibang istasyon, sa kagustuhang makasakay ay pumupunta dito lahat sa North Avenue station. Kaya nagkakaipon-ipon dito," he said. "Ginawa nating equal distribution in all the stations... Yung ibang mga pasahero natin na naghihintay kunyari sa Quezon Boulevard o Kamuning, lahat ito ay mabibigyan ng pare-parehong pagkakataong makasakay. Hindi na nila kailangang pumunta pa sa North Avenue station," he added. However, some commuters riding the MRT are complaining about the new procedure, noting that lines of passengers waiting for train rides have stretched to about half a kilometer. MRT nagpatupad ng bagong crowd control system; Pila ng mga pasahero napakahaba na at tambak sa baba. pic.twitter.com/7RVjWQ53Sz— Johnson Manabat (@johnsonmanabat) December 18, 2013 Vitangcol, for his part, said they conducted dry runs prior to the full implementation of the new crowd control scheme. During the dry runs, the MRT observed improvement in the flow of passengers, he said. -- Reports from ANC; Johnson Manabat, dzMM