Davao City gets $1-billion ADB loan for electric buses  

MANILA, Philippines — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $1 billion loan to modernize the public transport system in Davao City through the deployment of electric bus fleets.

In a statement yesterday, the multilateral lender said the loan is for the Davao Public Transport Modernization project, which will support the country’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gases and promote climate action.

The project, which is the ADB’s largest road-based public transport project in the Philippines, is expected to serve as a pilot to modernize the country’s public road transport system.  It will involve the procurement of about 1,100 buses to be managed by the private sector under performance-based contracts.

The new fleet is expected to reduce 60 percent of the annual greenhouse gas emissions from Davao City’s public transport.

“The project is set to transform the quality of Davao City’s public transport and support the city’s rapid economic growth with a low-carbon and climate-resilient bus system,”  ADB senior transport specialist for Southeast Asia Shuji Kimura said.

“Not only will this support the Philippines’ climate goals, but it will help to improve the lives of vulnerable populations especially women and the young who use public transport daily,” he said.

The project will serve about 800,000 passengers daily.

Aside from the deployment of electric buses, the project will also involve the construction of around 1,000 bus stops with bright lighting and shelters, five bus depots and three bus terminals, and provide bus driving training for the new system.

Through the project, Davao City’s public transport experience would be upgraded through  an intelligent transport system that includes a bus location system, automatic fare collection systems, and WiFi connectivity in buses, terminals, and depots.

To mitigate any adverse impact related to the project, the ADB said there will be a social development program which includes livelihood opportunities for affected public utility jeepney drivers, operators, and allied workers and their families, among others.

The ASEAN Infrastructure Fund is cofinancing the project with a $10 million loan under its ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility (ACGF).

Meanwhile, the Green Climate Fund is providing a $50 million loan under the ACGF’s Green Recovery Program.

Both funds are administered by the ADB.

The ADB also said technical assistance worth $1 million will also be delivered to support the Department of Transportation and the Davao City local government in developing staff capacities to oversee bus operations and project implementation.

Since 2015, the multilateral lender has been providing project preparatory technical assistance to help Davao City plan for the upgrade of its bus system.