DOTC to tap technical consultant for Cebu BRT

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is set to tap a technical support consultant for the proposed bus rapid transit (BRT) system in Cebu City being funded by the World Bank.

The DOTC said the consulting services would include technical support for the preparation and implementation of the BRT projects.

The DOTC said the consultant would also provide technical support for reforms to road-based public transport in the Philippines for a period of two years.

The technical support consultant would also provide expertise in project management; public transport service planning, operations and management; infrastructure design, traffic engineering, management, and technology; and development and analysis of business models.

The consultant would also provide institutional development; engagement with transport industry stakeholders; environment and social impact and safeguard; as well as procurement, communications, and consultations.

To qualify, the DOTC said interested consultants should have served as consultant in at least two projects involving urban public transport planning, and management as well as in planning, implementing and launching a BRT system that is already in operation.

The agency added that interested consultants could form joint ventures or enter into sub-consultancy arrangements to enhance their qualifications.

Interested parties, the DOTC added, have until Jan. 5 to submit their expressions of interest to the agency.

In cooperation with the Cebu City government, the DOTC intends to develop and construct the country’s first ever bus rapid transit system in province. The transport system features 176 buses that would run through dedicated and exclusive bus-ways from Bulacao to Talamban in Cebu, with a link to Cebu’s South Road Property.

The system would serve an estimated 330,000 passengers per day when it starts operations in 2018 wherein buses would also traverse Cebu City’s business districts, residential areas, shopping centers and key tourist sites.

The system will have 33 stations along the corridor, with buses arriving at each station every two to five minutes.

The Department of Finance and the World Bank signed a $141-million loan deal to finance the Cebu BRT last Oct. 14. Of this, about $116 million would be sourced from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and $25 million from the Clean Technology Fund (CTF).

The Philippine government and the World Bank chose to undertake the development of a BRT system because it is a cheaper alternative to rail system, a quicker project to construct and it has higher quality of service despite having the same capacity as rail.