Talisay endorses HQPTS routesto LTFRB

CEBU, Philippines - The Talisay City Council is endorsing before the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board the new routes for a High Quality Public Transport System (HQPTS) at the South Road Properties.

City Councilor Socrates Fernandez, chairman of the Committee on Public Works, also asked the Department of Public Works and Highways to use the median structure along the South Coastal Road from Barangay San Roque to Lawaan intersection as bus rail stations for the proposed public transport system.

According to Fernandez, the route in Talisay City will only cover the Cebu South Coastal Road Project or CSCRP along Barangay San Roque to Barangay Lawaan I and the HQPTS will use the selected median structure along the South Coastal Road from San Roque to Lawaan intersection for the purpose of bus rail stations.

The HQPTS is a system that would transport the public in the anticipation of the opening of the SM Seaside City complex at the SRP this year. 

Just recently, the DOTC approved the HQPTS, which was proposed by SM Prime Holdings Inc., that aims to operate a high-quality bus service from Talisay City Hall to Mactan-Cebu International Airport.

The routes of the HQPTS include the Talisay City to Mambaling, Talisay to North Bus Terminal, Talisay to MCIA and North Bus Terminal to Mambaling.

Earlier, the Cebu City Council endorsed eight bus stations for the HQBTS route from the SRP to the North Reclamation Area.

The council identified the bus stations as inside the SM Seaside City at the SRP, SM City Cebu at the NRA, South Coastal Road near Fort San Pedro, near Compaña Maritima, N. Bacalso Avenue near Cebu Institute of Technology-University, City de Mari's residential area, and at II Corso.

These locations were endorsed to the Office of the Mayor, the city's Department of Engineering and Public Works, and the Cebu-BRT project implementation unit for evaluation and approval.

"With the approval and the impending implementation of the HQPTS, and likewise, following one of the franchise conditions set forth by the Department of Transportation and Communications, there is a need to construct a high-quality bus stations," said City Councilor Nestor Archival, committee on transportation chairman.

He said the "hybrid" buses to be used in the HQPTS will traverse the SRP to and would be an interim transport to supplement the bus rapid transit, which would be operational by 2018.   (FREEMAN)