DOTC shortlists 5 bidders for study on how to decongest MM

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has shortlisted the number of bidders to five for a consultancy contract for a survey that would help develop a public transportation improvement plan for Metro Manila and the adjoining provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, and Bulacan.

In a notice of eligibility and shortlisting, DOTC Undersecretary Jose Perpetuo Lotilla said the agency’s Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) has shortlisted the number of bidders for the the Metro Manila Urban Transportation Integrated Study (MMUTIS) Update and Capacity Enhancement Project (MUCEP)

Lotilla said in the notice that the companies shortlisted for the project included Sustainable Development Solutions, the tandem of Woodfields Consultants Inc. and GHD Pty Ltd., TCGI Engineers, Urban Integrated Consultants Inc., and Syconsult Inc.

The budget for the contract amounting to P41.05 million would be sourced from the agency’s 2012 Transport Studies fund. Bids that would be received in excess of the approved budget for contract would automatically be rejected at the opening of the financial proposals.

The project includes a household interview survey aimed at obtaining information from residents in the survey area to better understand the actual socio-economic conditions and travel characteristics or passenger trip patterns of respondents.

The survey which would also consider the opinion on transport development of the respondents would be used to support the ongoing update of the database of the 1996 MMUTIS.

“Toward this end, the DOTC will fund a household interview survey which aims to capture current traffic conditions based on passenger trip patterns and to get public opinion on traffic development,” the DOTC earlier said in a notice to bid.

The DOTC is rebidding the contract after a failed bidding last November.

A study published by the National Center for Transportation Studies (NCTS) showed that financial losses due to traffic congestion in Metro Manila amounted to P137.5 billion in 2011. This brought to P1.5 trillion the losses over the past 11 years due to traffic congestion excluding the P4.5 billion losses from fuel consumption.

The financial losses are mostly on productivity as transport of goods and services are delayed due to bad traffic. The study only covered traffic congestion losses of five occupations, particularly government officials, professionals, technicians, clerical workers, and service workers.