The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is targeting to bid out another package of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project this year as the first phase is about to start construction.
Mark Steven Pastor, DOTr undersecretary for road transport and infrastructure, recently told reporters that the second package—which is currently undergoing detailed engineering design study—was set for procurement by the third or fourth quarter of this year. The third package will be tackled after.
Cebu BRT is a bus service with dedicated routes or priority lanes traversing a 13.8-kilometer corridor from South Road Properties through Mambaling up to IT Park.
The public transportation system is designed to have 17 bus stations, two terminals and one depot. It will have a 160,000-passenger capacity once fully operational.
First phase
Pastor said the first package would break ground on Feb. 27. The first phase includes four bus stations located at Cebu South Bus Terminal, Cebu Normal University and around Fuente Osmeña Circle and Cebu Provincial Capitol.
The contract was awarded to Hunan Road and Bride Construction, a Chinese contractor, in November 2022.
The DOTr official said they were being assisted by the Cebu local government and the Department of Public Works and Highways to clear all right-of-way issues.
The government seeks to complete the entire project by 2025.
Pastor said they were also targeting to extend the terms of the loans extended for the BRT project.
“It is just a matter of how many years [and] what are the parameters. This is a negotiation of DOTr together with Neda (National Economic and Development Authority) and Department of Finance,” he said.
The financing facility provided by the World Bank is set to expire by June 30. The loan period for borrowings extended by Agence Fracaise de Developpement will end by March 30.
The Cebu BRT project seeks to provide efficient and affordable urban transport system in the country’s second largest metropolis after Metro Manila. INQ
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