MANILA, Philippines — A business group expressed opposition to the proposal to allow hybrid and electric vehicles on the EDSA busway, stressing that doing so will reduce the efficiency of the capital region’s important transport corridor.
In a statement Friday, the Management Association of the Philippines said that implementing the proposal allowing other vehicles on the EDSA busway “amounts to policy backsliding and will seriously set back the gains thus far achieved.”
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EDSA busway is used exclusively by public buses, reducing the amount of time spent by commuters on travel.
“Clogging the busway with other vehicles will severely degrade the efficiency of the busway to the great detriment of the larger constituency—400,000 bus passengers who now use this vital transport corridor,” MAP said.
Energy Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella said on Tuesday that the government is eyeing to allow hybrid and electric vehicles (EVs) to use bus lanes and bike lanes in major thoroughfares such as EDSA in a bid to encourage Filipinos to use EVs, the Philippine News Agency reported.
Full BRT
MAP said it supports the announcement of Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista to upgrade the busway to full bus rapid transit (BRT) standards.
According to MAP, the standards call for specifications such as a dedicated busway for the exclusive use of public buses, alignment away from traffic conflict lanes, and control from inclusion and intrusion by other vehicles with its outer edges delineated with barriers.
“The solution to traffic congestion on EDSA is to fully develop this busway into a full BRT to conveniently and comfortably convey daily commuters more efficiently and entice motorists to ride the bus,” the business group said.
Bautista said in November that the agency hopes to privatize the EDSA busway to ensure the transport corridor will be funded in the long run.