Marcos on BRT: Finish by Dec.

CEBU, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. wants the first package of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit done by December as “a gift to Cebuanos,” while also reminding the Department of Transportation to give just compensation to property owners and providing relocation for informal settlers who will be affected by the project.

Marcos led the groundbreaking ceremony for the “dream come true” Cebu BRT project yesterday along Osmeña Boulevard in Cebu City.

It took almost three decades since the conceptualization of the Cebu City to finally reach such milestone, no thanks to the delay and revisions that came along the way.

“Today, we are finally here to implement this plan and re-calibrate the transport system of the Metro Cebu,” Marcos said.

Cebu City Mayor Rama recalled that the initial discussions on what is now the BRT started in the ‘90s yet together with then-mayor Tomas Osmeña. However, the project was only approved in 2014.

Thereafter, the project failed to advance due to some opposition of sorts, as well as due to revisions on the original plan and failed biddings.

At the time of President Rodrigo Duterte, modifications were introduced to make it an integrated transport system, but the implementation proper once again hit another snag after Duterte’s term ended.

In his first State of the National Address (SONA) last year, Marcos vowed to make the CBRT a priority.

Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said Marcos has made good his promise.

“This is a historic day, indeed, for finally we see ground broken on what has been conceived, conceptualized, planned for and thought about for many, many years. But it had to take a President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. who stands by his word to come here and manifest that with this ceremony, the groundbreaking, this BRT project will finally, finally become a reality for us Cebuanos,” Garcia said.

Dream come true

For Cebu City Mayor Rama, the BRT is a “dream come true”.

Rama, however, pointed out that the BRT is not the only solution to the traffic woes in the city.

Nevertheless, he said this is expected to improve the traffic situation in Cebu City.

The CBRT is envisioned to be a high-quality bus-based transit system that is expected to deliver fast, reliable and comfortable services with elements that include low-floor busses, high-end technology, station platforms, segregated lanes and an automatic fare collection system.

The CBRT has three phases with package 1 civil works expected to begin a week or two from now, according to CBRT project manager Engr. Norvin Imbong.

Imbong said there are some permits that need to be complied with first and approval from the Commission on Audit that need to be secured regarding newly-asphalted roads that may be affected by the project. Once done, implementation can go full blast already, he added.

Package 1, which is awarded to Hunan Road and Bridge Construction Group Corporation Ltd., covers the construction of the BRT infrastructure which consists of four stations, including the Cebu South Bus Terminal, Cebu Normal University, Fuente Osmeña area and Capitol, plus a link to the port.

Aside from the construction of a 2.38-kilometer segregated bus lane, it will also have a 1.15-kilometer pedestrian improvement for active transport.

Marcos expressed confidence that Hunan will be able to deliver the project by December of this year, based on its track record.

“If we start operations by December, that will be the best possible Christmas gift to Cebu,” the president said.

Other Concerns

The partial operation of the CBRT project is expected to cater to 60,000 individuals daily and 160,000 commuters daily during in its full operation.

Marcos also reminded DOTr to give just compensation to property owners who will be affected by the CBRT project and to find ways to properly relocate the informal settlers.

“On this note, Secretary Jimmy (Bautista of DOTr), kailangan tama ang gagawin natin. Kung hindi, kakatukan tayo ni Gov. Gwen at ni Mayor Mike,” he said.

Separately, Bautista assured that all concerns will be addressed.

“Yes, actually, lahat ng mga projects ng Department of Transporation that will affect people, especially the ISF, informal settler families, we will see to it that they will get the same convenience and status when they move them because of DOTr projects and those lot owners who will be affected will surely have just compensation for the market values of their properties,” Bautista said.

Bautista, however, said they will deal with this in packages 2 and 3 already, which they hope to be done by 2025.

Part 2

The bidding for package 2 is expected to take place either on the third or fourth quarter of this year so that work can move faster while the buses for package 1 is expected to be bid out as soon as the civil works start.

“As soon as we start the construction, we will also start the selection of buses… We are looking at electric buses siguro,” added Bautista.

The whole CBRT costs P16.3 billion with funding from the World Bank and the French Development Agency and the Philippine national government.

The national government is asking for another extension of its loans to both the French Development Agency after it ends on March 31, and World Bank after it closes on June 30.

“We have talked about it and they are amenable to the extension,” Bautista said.

As work begins soon, Marcos urged Cebuanos and the general public to be patient. The inconvenience, he said, will bring comfort and economic development in the near future.

“I invite everyone to remain patient, to be considerate, as these temporary disturbances and interruptions are aimed at pushing long-term benefits for the city and for the province,” he said.

After Cebu, other BRT projects are planned for Iloilo and Davao. – JMD (FREEMAN)