Traffic jams back in Metro Manila

TRAFFIC jams and outdoor crowds are back in the Philippine capital and 38 other cities and provinces on Tuesday after officials allowed businesses and public transport, including shopping malls, movie houses and restaurants, to operate at full capacity as Covid-19 cases continued to drop with more vaccinations, officials said.

In a bid to further boost the pandemic-battered economy, authorities placed Metropolitan Manila and 38 other regions under the lowest rung of a five-step pandemic alert system from March 1 to March 15 and lifted most health restrictions, but still required the full vaccination of residents 18 and older against the coronavirus and the wearing of face masks outdoors and in indoor establishments.