DOTC sets bid deadline for FTI transpo terminal

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is set to bid out next month the proposed P4 billion integrated transport system (ITS) at the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) compound in Taguig City to serve passengers coming from Laguna and Batangas.

In an invitation to pre-qualify and bid, the DOTC is giving interested investors until Oct. 6 to submit bids to finance, design, construct, operate and maintain the ITS-South Terminal.

The DOTC said the public private partnership (PPP) project aims to provide a central transport terminal where all modes of transport would be available in one location.

The terminal would connect passengers from the Laguna and Batangas side to other urban transport systems such as the proposed North-South Commuter Rail of the Philippine National Railways, city buses, taxis, and other public utility vehicles that serve inner Metro Manila.

The project would include a passenger terminal building, arrival and departure bays, public information systems, ticketing and baggage holding facilities as well as park-ride facilities.

The DOTC said the PPP project with a concession period of 35 years would be awarded through a competitive bidding following the procurement rules and regulations prescribed under RA 6957 also known as the Build-Operate-Transfer law as amended by RA 7718.

Under the plan, the DOTC contracts out the construction of the ITS-South Terminal to a private entity such that the concessionaire builds the facility on a turnkey basis.

Several companies have expressed interest in the terminal that would connect passengers coming from Cavite to other urban transport systems such as the future Light Rail Transit line 1 (LRT) South Extension to Bacoor in Cavite, city bus, taxi, and other public utility vehicles plying Metro Manila.

These include diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp., conglomerate Ayala Corp. and property giant Ayala Land Inc. , Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. of infrastructure giant Metro Pacific Investments Corp., Robinsons Land Inc. of taipan John Gokongwei, D.M. Wenceslao and Associates Inc., Vicente T. Lao Construction, French-owned Egis Projects Philippines, Filinvest Land Inc. of taipan Andrew Gotianun; Megawide Construction Corp.; State Properties Corp.; and Expedition Properties Corp.

The P7.7 billion ITS project was one of the seven major infrastructure projects worth P184.2 billion approved by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board chaired by President Aquino last Nov. 21.

The projects involve the establishment of three mass transportation intermodal terminals at the outskirts of Metro Manila - one in the north of EDSA serving passengers to and from northern Luzon and two in the south serving passengers to and from Laguna or Batangas side and those to and from the Cavite side. This would maximize road usage by reducing vehicle volume and eliminating provincial bus traffic to improve traffic flow along Metro Manila’s major thoroughfares particularly EDSA.