Megawide defers PITX expansion

MANILA, Philippines — Megawide Construction Corp. of tycoon Edgar Saavedra is putting on hold the planned expansion of the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) to assess first the potential impacts of upcoming bus rapid transit (BRT) projects in Cavite and EDSA.

“Right now, we have a project in Cavite, it’s sort of a BRT. We want to see first what it’s impact. So we want to see that next year,” said Saavedra, Megawide chairman, president and CEO.

Megawide is conducting the planning for the proposed Cavite BRT system which will connect a significant portion of Cavite to Metro Manila through the company’s PITX.

The project is targeted to start next year.

“The traffic changes. We’ll just wait first next year and we’ll see from there. (We will see) not only the volume but it’s more of the change in profile as well,” Saavedra said.

“Number two is the EDSA Carousel. We are also waiting for that because more than 50 percent of our traffic comes from the EDSA Carousel. So if that pushes through, it will impact on the profile of our traffic,” he said.

Megawide has previously submitted an unsolicited proposal for the EDSA BRT, but the PPP Center and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) have decided that it would be done through a solicited route.

The project involves the redevelopment of the EDSA Carousel line, which assumes a transition period to a full-fledged BRT system.

Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said it would be faster to do a solicited rather than an unsolicited proposal for the project.

“Just to receive and check the completion of documents will take almost one month. And for us to review the proposal takes another four months and to negotiate with the proponent maybe another four months–so it will take time. Then there is a Swiss challenge. Unlike when it’s a solicited proposal, the terms of reference are already defined,” he said.

Asked on when the bidding for the project will take place, Bautista said the agency has already engaged the Asian Development Bank to prepare the business case.

Saavedra expressed willingness for Megawide to join the project once it is tendered.

PITX, the country’s first-ever landport is operated by MWM Terminals Inc., a subsidiary of Megawide, under a 35-year build-transfer-operate contract with the DOTr.

It is a 4.5-hectare development and currently Lot 1 (2.7 hectares) houses the transport terminal, commercial spaces and office buildings under one roof.

There were previously plans for a P5 billion Lot 2 development covering 1.8 hectares which will further improve terminal operations by providing a staging area for buses.

The original plan is to develop a similar structure to the existing terminal comprising of four levels, with commercial leasing assets occupying the floors above the bus staging area.

Just last week, PITX announced that it has already reached a milestone of 146 million overall foot traffic since 2019.