EDSA Busway profitable for private operators – DOTr

MANILA, Philippines — The EDSA Busway can be a profitable business for private operators to manage for as long as they consolidate their assets to bring down the cost of running it, according to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

In an interview with OneNews’ “The Chiefs” on Thursday night, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said he expects the privatization of the EDSA Busway to gain interest from the private sector given its potential to rake in profits.

“The EDSA Busway can be profitable because what the private sector can do is form one group that will operate that infrastructure,” Bautista said in a mix of English and Filipino.

“Members of that group can consolidate their assets. Bus operators can be stockholders of this new company so they don’t have to compete with each other. At the same time, they can charge higher fares. They can be more efficient without any competition,” he added.

Bautista said the DOTr is serious with its plan to privatize the EDSA Busway, especially as it can no longer finance the upgrades it may require in the future.

Under the plan, the DOTr will transfer the EDSA Busway to a private operator that will then be tasked to modernize the infrastructure under its ownership.

One of the changes that the EDSA Busway needs is the construction of additional stops that are different from the stations of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) that also traverses EDSA.

“The EDSA Busway has around 500 buses that run the line every day. What we can do there is to have one private group that will operate all of the buses passing through,” Bautista said.

“At the same time, what the private group can do is separate the busway stops from the MRT-3 stations. It can invest in new stops situated far from the MRT-3 so they don’t have to compete against each other anymore, giving passengers more options for their travel,” he added.

The DOTr had requested a budget of P212 million to improve the EDSA Busway in 2023, but the Department of Budget and Management rejected the proposal.

Bautista said last month that the DOTr is left with no other option but to privatize the EDSA Busway to ensure that its operations and maintenance will be funded.