Villarete: Fate of BRT known this month

CEBU, Philippines — The fate of the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit project will be known by the end of the month as the Investment Coordination Committee of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) reconvenes.

This was disclosed by Cebu City Administrator Nigel Paul Villarete, the city’s point person for the BRT project.

“There’s no official communications (whether the BRT is canceled or not). But there will be an ICC meeting by the end of the month so that would be the most official pronouncement,” he told reporters.

Villarete made the statement after a news report said the Department of Transportation has cancelled all BRT projects in the country, including the city’s P16.3-billion BRT.

Villarete said the city will clarify the matter with DOTr because it was also reported earlier that the Cebu BRT is included in the “basket of solutions” for Metro Cebu.

“The status is there was a request for cancellation last April 11 and the NEDA ICC has ruled that it needs an ICC grade study to be conducted and to prove that it is not doable. That’s what ICC need. DOTr has to submit the study which should have been done by external consultant,” he said.

Villarete said he was told by a reliable source that DOTr hired a third party consultant that reportedly favored Cebu’s BRT.

He said it’s up to the ICC to make the final decision on the approved and funded BRT project of the city.

For his part, Villarete said he is 100 percent confident of the project’s viability, as affirmed by the World Bank.

Villarete believes there is no reason that the Cebu BRT will not be approved by NEDA, which has already approved it twice.

“With regard to the recent pronouncement of DOTr, I’m really saddened by the current stand of the transport department of this country,” he said, adding, that the BRT system is one of the highlighted promotions for sustainable urbanization in ASEAN countries.

Villarete, an urban planner, said he was one of the attendees of the ASEAN Sustainable Urbanization Strategy (ASUS) meeting in Singapore.

At ASUS, up to 10 strategies were presented and one of those highlighted is the promotion of BRTs across the 10 ASEAN-member states, including the Philippines.

“It’s due to be approved this November by the ASEAN en banc which highlights the strategy to urbanize across the 10 countries and one of those criteria is to promote and put up BRT in 10 ASEAN member States. It’s really perplexing for me to have ASEAN go through this direction, promoting this BRT, and then our own country is trying to cancel BRTs,” he said.

Not Solo Solution

DOTr, meanwhile, said the BRT is not the only solution to the traffic problem in Cebu.

“Doon sa Cebu, maliwanag hindi ho yung BRT ang solusyon lang yan. It will be an integrated transport system. Kung sinasabi namin huwag kayong mag BRT, hindi namin iiwanan ang Cebu na walang solusyon sa transportation situation nila," said DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade during a press conference in Clark, Pampanga the other day.

Tugade said they are now pushing for an Integrated Transport System that will include the BRT, LRT, MRT, monorail, and common stations.

In the same press conference, DOTr Undersecretary Tim Orbos said the study for a BRT in Cebu City was done in 2010 and, since then, traffic volume has increased by up to 10 percent per annum.

"Marapat na tingnan ulit namin ang pag-aaral sa proyekto na yan. Yung sa Cebu, may mga lugar na, wala na, kahit anong gawin mo, hindi na talaga pwedeng maluwagan at tumaas ang congestion sa Cebu," Orbos said.

Orbos said the money intended for the right of way acquisition was used by the previous administration to put up terminals and bus stops.

“Kaya po nararapat sa DOTr na i-review yan at ang lumabas po ay tinatawag ng ating kalihim na basket of solutions of Cebu na karapat dapat na maibigay. Ibig sabihin po niyan, may BRT, may railway, may Intelligent Traffic System. Hindi lang po iisa ang solusyon ng Cebu kundi ilang mga solusyon," Orbos said.

Meanwhile, the Cebu City government has identified at least 80 families in barangays Mambaling and Sambag I that will be displaced when BRT stations will be constructed at the barangays.

The mayor’s executive assistant, Francisco “Bimbo” Fernandez, said the city government submitted the Relocation Action Plan to the World Bank last month.

Fernandez said Barangay Lorega San Miguel is a possible relocation site where the city will construct a five-story building. — JMO (FREEMAN)