Why make dedicated lane?: DOTr secretary hits BRT project

CEBU, Philippines — Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade yesterday said he could not understand why a dedicated lane should be established for Cebu City’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project when such scheme has “not been tested yet.”

Tugade, who was at the Asia CEO Forum in Manila yesterday, was asked on his stance about the BRT project in Cebu City, which is supposedly being implemented by his office.

“I’m not against the BRT system because it’s a good system. I'm not an engineer, but my conscience tells me -- I hope someone will enlighten me -- how can I dedicate a lane for a system that's not even tested?” he told the audience at the forum.

Tugade’s remarks were captured in a Facebook live video by Cerwin Eviota, who was at the venue, along with proponents of the P63-billion monorail project for Metro Cebu.

Under the existing plan, the 21-kilometer BRT route will see a dedicated lane from N. Bacalso Avenue, South Road Properties, Osmeña Boulevard, N. Escario Street, and Governor Cuenco Avenue in Cebu City.

BRT proponents, Tugade said, have been saying that this dedicated lane will work even in narrow roads because private car owners will, according to them, no longer use their cars as they will prefer BRT vehicles.

However, he said people buy cars not just as a mode of transportation but also as a form of “social stature.” Changing this stature, he added, will be easier said than done.

“I’m not against BRT system. It’s a good system but start it on a platform that’s grounded on ground zero. Meaning to say, (roads that are) not yet crowded or congested,” he said.

Tugade prefers a transport system underground or above the ground, citing light rail transit, monorail transit, and subway system as among those that will truly improve traffic situation.

He said though that his decision or preference over rail system is not yet final as he was instructed by higher authorities to hire a consultant for the BRT project.

People Over Cars

Cebu City Administrator Nigel Paul Villarete, an urban planner, said there are hundreds of BRT systems now running and being implemented around the world.

“It has been around for decades and has been tested in many countries in the world.  It is now even being built in cities in the U.S.A. In both developed and developing countries, BRTs exist and are being built,” he said.

While he admitted it’s difficult to convince car owners to prefer the BRT, Villarete said it is not the project’s primary intention. He said BRT is a public transportation system provided especially for those who have no cars, or who wouldn’t be able to buy one.  Villarete also further argued that BRT systems are efficient in congested areas to address mobility, stressing that public transportation is needed when areas are crowded or congested.

“The Secretary of Transportation should be concerned about people and not about cars. Most especially the poor who have to suffer all the inconveniences and indignities in our current jeepney system,” he added.

Delay

In a separate development, Mayor Tomas Osmeña said representatives from the World Bank recently visited the city to get updates on the BRT project.

As of yesterday, however, he has no information yet on whether the DOTr, the implementing agency, has already awarded the technical service consultant contract to a winning bidder as ordered by the National Economic Development Authority-Investment Coordination Committee.

“As far as I’m concerned, we will get it if we have to wait it out. If we have to wait until the next administration, what choice do we have?” the mayor said.

Osmeña said representatives of World Bank and Agence Francaise Development (AFD) were asking on the causes of the delay in the BRT project implementation.

The mayor said he explained to them that Tugade and Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Lloyd Dino are “causing” the delay because they are against the project.

Dino has been vocal about his opposition to the project believing it won’t work for a city with narrow roads, such as Cebu.

Meanwhile, the so-called Cebu BRT Mission, which sought to assess issues and solutions concerning the project ran from May 15 to 18, and was participated in by the Cebu City government, DOTr, World Bank, and AFD.

“The project was assessed and seen to remain technically viable, as well as economically. The issues raised at the ICC were not taken into consideration because as far as the project is concerned, it remained as a duly-approved project of the Philippine government and the World Bank and discuss this on the basis that this is a continuing project,” Villarete said.

Since some component activities were slowed down, Villarete said the mission agreed to facilitate to move the project faster and some timelines were revised with each stakeholder committing to do their respective responsibilities.

Villarete said the World Bank will issue a comprehensive report on the outcome of their visit two weeks from now.

In 2015, the Philippine government entered into a loan agreement with AFD and World Bank, through International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), Clean Technology Fund (CTF), and Credit Facility Agreement (CFA), for the implementation of the Cebu BRT project. — /JMD (FREEMAN)