BRT Cebu is still a go say Pernia, DOTr

THE P17-billion Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is still a go, after all.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia and the Department of Transportation (DOTr) confirmed this yesterday.

The clarification was issued after reports came out on Wednesday that all three BRT projects in the pipeline have been put on hold by DOTr
Secretary Arthur Tugade.

In a text message sent to Cebu Daily News, DOTr Communications Director Goddess Hope Libiran clarified that Tugade had only put on hold the two BRT projects for Metro Manila.

“Secretary Arthur Tugade did not mention anything about canceling the Cebu BRT Project,” said Libiran.

“The DOTr, in fact, released a press statement earlier this month stating Secretary Tugade’s direction to include the Cebu BRT project in the government’s basket of solutions to address traffic congestion in Cebu,” she added.

Pernia, for his part, said that the Cebu BRT will be part of the agenda of the National Economic and Development Authority Investment Coordination Committee (Neda–ICC) in a meeting scheduled at the end of the month.

As the director-general of Neda, Pernia sits as the co-chairperson of Neda-ICC.

Tomas hopeful

The announcement also made Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña optimistic that his pet project will be implemented soon.

In a press conference yesterday, Osmeña said the chances of having the BRT to be fully implemented is “very good.”

“This BRT, is taking so long. Paul (City Administrator Paul Villarete) told me that they laid off our technical consultants but now they’ve been reinstated so that’s a good news,” Osmeña said.

But he added that he does not want to be complacent, and that he is still worried that those who are against the BRT may still come up with means to delay, or possibly scrap, the project.

“I always have worries. We have enemies. As simple as that. We just have to be careful. People have their own agenda,” explained Osmeña.

Basket of solutions

The press release Libiran was referring to pertains to Tugade’s proposal to implement an intermodal and integrated transport system (IITS) in Metro Cebu.

It was unveiled by the Office of the Presidential Assistant for the Visayas (OPAV) last July 2.

The IITS included not only a BRT in roads with no less than three lanes but also a point-to-point (P2P) bus system, a Light Rail Transit (LRT) from Carcar City to Danao City, and a monorail system on Mactan Island.

Meanwhile, the OPAV maintained its stand against the BRT in Cebu saying it “will not work on Cebu’s narrow roads and cannot be a viable solution to Metro Cebu’s worsening traffic.”