DOTr approves inclusion of Subic railway under emergency powers

MANILA, Philippines - The transportation department has approved the inclusion of the 100-kilometer elevated railway and expressway from Subic Port to the port of Manila proposed by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) in the list of projects under the emergency powers being asked from Congress.

In a statement, SBMA chairman Martin Dino said he had received the approval of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade to place the proposed 100-km modal elevated railway and expressway project as part of the emergency powers President Duterte is seeking from Congress to solve the country’s traffic woes.

The P100-billion project, which could be completed in 48 months, is expected to help ease port and traffic congestion in Metro Manila, as well as increase cargo transit in Subic Port.

At present, the Subic Port is operating at only one-third of its rated capacity of 600,000 TEUs or twenty-foot equivalent unit containers.

While the project has yet to be implemented, Dino said SBMA is already working on increasing Subic Bay Port’s capacity for its new container terminals 3 and 4 to have an additional 600,000 TEUs.

The President has asked Congress for emergency powers to address the country’s traffic problem.

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has also submitted a list of projects to be implemented when the emergency powers are granted.

While the DOTr was hoping the emergency powers could be given before the end of the year, the proposal has yet to be approved.

Discussions on the proposed emergency powers are expected to be continued when Congress resumes sessions in January.

Tugade said earlier that emergency powers are needed as the economy is incurring losses from traffic with an average Filipino spending more time waiting for transportation going to work and home.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) estimates the Philippine economy loses P2.4 billion per day due to road traffic. Without intervention, JICA expects the loses to increase to P6 billion a day by 2030.