4 firms eye P4-B FTI transport terminal

MANILA, Philippines - Four companies are expected to slug it out for the construction of the P4-billion integrated transport system (ITS) South Terminal at the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) complex in Taguig, the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) announced yesterday.

DOTC spokesperson Michael Arthur Sagcal said companies that submitted prequalification documents for the public private partnership (PPP) project include property giant Ayala Land Inc., Filinvest Land Inc. of taipan Andrew Gotianun, Megawide Construction Corp., and Datem Inc.

Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) and Robinsons Land Inc. of tycoon John Gokongwei earlier bought bidding documents from the DOTC.

The South terminal would connect passengers from the Laguna and Batangas side to other urban transport systems such as the proposed North-South Commuter Rail of the Philippine National Railways, city buses, taxis, and other public utility vehicles that serve inner Metro Manila.

The project would include a passenger terminal building, arrival and departure bays, public information systems, ticketing and baggage holding facilities as well as park-ride facilities.

On the other hand, interested companies for the P2.5-billion ITS -Southwest Terminal project at the Coastal Road Terminal along the Manila-Cavite Expressway have until Dec. 1 to submit their qualification documents.

Several companies have expressed interest in the terminal that would connect passengers coming from Cavite to other urban transport systems such as the future Light Rail Transit line 1 (LRT) South Extension to Bacoor in Cavite, city bus, taxi, and other public utility vehicles plying Metro Manila.

These include diversified conglomerate SMC. Ayala Land, Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. of infrastructure giant Metro Pacific Investments Corp., Robinsons Land Inc. of taipan John Gokongwei, D.M. Wenceslao and Associates Inc., Vicente T. Lao Construction, French-owned Egis Projects Philippines, Filinvest Land Inc. of taipan Andrew Gotianun; Megawide Construction Corp.; State Properties Corp.; and Expedition Properties Corp.

The DOTC is still identifying the final site for the ITS-North Terminal. It is now looking at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) and the Manila Seedling Bank at the corner of Quezon Ave. and EDSA as well as the property of the National Housing Authority (NHA) near the Trinoma Mall.

The P7.7-billion ITS projects would maximize road usage by reducing vehicle volume and eliminating provincial bus traffic to improve traffic flow along Metro Manila’s major thoroughfares particularly EDSA.