Study on monorail in Cebu “encouraging”

CEBU, Philippines — Proponents of the P63 billion Metro Cebu Monorail have announced that results of the feasibility study for the project is “encouraging”.

The study was undertaken by Systra Philippines since March 2017.

“The final results of the feasibility study (FS) has been encouraging, especially that we could achieve both our project and equity internal rates of return,” said Domingo So Peñaloza, chairman and CEO of Philtram Transportation Consortium, Inc. (PTCI), in a statement.

Conservative projections reportedly peg the daily ridership at more than 280,000 a day with passengers boarding and alighting at Robinson’s Fuente area, along General Maxilom Avenue, near Robinson’s Galleria, and beside SM City Cebu.

“The Systra study of the US$ 1.25 billion (?63 billion) proposed monorail project showed the highest ridership with more than 25,000 boarding north-bound and also about 25,000 alighting from the north at the planned Fuente and Mango stations,” the statement reads.

“Over 26,000 passengers are also expected to board south-bound from SM City area, while over 25,000 are expected to alight from the south every day, it added, qualifying that the scenario has no BRT operating as currently planned,” it added.

The study would have been completed in November last year but Philtram had to make adjustments in the alignments when it adhered to the advice of local officials and the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

“Our FS is basically done and the documents are now being prepared for the submission of our unsolicited proposal soon… We are just completing and fine tuning the requirements for a comprehensive submission,” Peñaloza said.

Should the proposed Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) pushes through, ridership for the Monorail may be reduce by 15 percent in the first two years of operations because of the sharing of alignment along N. Bacalso from Bulacao to corner V. Rama Avenue.

Philtram emphasized that the Monorail and BRT “could co-exist and complement each other.”

The company even announced earlier that it will donate three electric BRT units to Cebu City or DOTr for test run and training with the help of a partner bus manufacturer in China.

Philtram chief technology architect Jose L. Guardo, Jr. said the BRT should push through as planned.  He said he is pushing for an eventual inter-modal system that will adjust the alignment of the BRT and upgrade it into a “SMART BRT.”

“The SMART BRT will need no physical barrier, just a painted line on the street, but equipped with the latest ICT technology backed by Huawei of China,” he said.

Philtram said that with its updated monorail alignment running from Talisay City through N. Bacalso, V. Rama Avenue, Fuente Osmeña, General Maxilom Avenue, port area, M.J. Cuenco Avenue, and Subangdaku-Wireless junction to Pacific Mall, it will propose eventually to move the current BRT alignment.

Guardo said that when the Metro Cebu Monorail operates fully, the SMART BRT can operate from Minglanilla through the Cebu South Coastal Road, SRP Mambaling, through N. Bacalso Avenue, and until the Cebu South Bus Terminal.

He said the elevated monorail system would later serve Barangay Talamban in Cebu City and up to Consolacion town in the north as it requires no road right of way acquisition under Phase 2 by 2021 of the company’s masterplan.

Backed by China Railway Engineering Corp. (CREC), Philtram will use couches and signaling system of the latest Bombardier Innovia 300 developed in Canada and Germany that will be manufactured by China Railway Rolling Stock Corp. (CRRC) – Puzhen Bombardier Transportation System (PBTS).

Should Philtram acquire an Original Proponent Status (OPS) from DOTr and obtain the eventual contract under the build-transfer-operate scheme of the government’s Private-Public Partnership (PPP), it will proceed with the construction and complete it within just two years. (FREEMAN)