DOTC extends prequalification for southern transport system

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has given interested bidders of the proposed P4 billion integrated transport terminal an extension of almost one month to prepare their qualification documents for the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) project.

Jose Perpetuo Lotilla, DOTC undersecretary and head of the prequalification bids and awards committee, said interested companies would be given ample time to prepare their qualification documents for the integrated transport system (ITS) – south terminal at the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) compound in Taguig City.

“In order to give prospective bidders ample time to prepare their respective qualification documents, the submission date for the qualification documents shall be 21 calendar days from the issuance of the PBAC’s responses to the prospective bidders’ queries,” Lotilla said in General Bid Bulletin No. 05-2014.

Companies that expressed interest to finance, design, construct, operate and maintain the ITS-South Terminal, designed to serve passengers coming from Laguna and Batangas, were earlier given until Oct. 6 to submit their qualification documents for the PPP project.

Companies that bought bid documents for the project include diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp., property giant Ayala Land Inc., Filinvest Group of taipan Andrew Gotianun, Filipino-owned Megawide Construction Corp., and Datem Construction.

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.

Earlier, the DOTC also postponed by 30 days the Sept. 29 deadline for the submission of qualification documents for the P2.5-billion ITS -Southwest Terminal project situated in a 2.9-hectare property located at the Coastal Road Terminal along the Manila-Cavite Expressway 30 more days to prepare their bid documents.

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 SMC, Ayala Land, 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 DOTC is still identifying the final site for the ITS-North Terminal. It is now looking at the Seedling Bank at the corner of Quezon Ave. and EDSA as well as well as the property of the National Housing Authority (NHA) near the Trinoma Mall.

The P7.7 billion ITS projects 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.