DOST urges Council to allow Rama to roll out tram study

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is asking the Cebu City Council to authorize Mayor Michael Rama to enter into an agreement with the agency so they could start making a study on the viability of operating a ground-level tram in the city.

DOST official Trixie Hazel Velez said the memorandum of agreement will lay down the responsibilities of DOST and the city government and mark the start of the three-month study with no cost to the city.

Part of the study will determine the minimum fare for the planned road trains also known as hybrid electric light road trains which the DOST has been developing.

Rama earlier said he would welcome any new mode of transportation in the city that would serve as an alternative to the planned Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) that remains pending before the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) board.

DOST officials were in Cebu last week to brief the City Council on the proposed railway for Cebu City.

Elevated

Engr. Arlene Estacio of DOST said a prototype of the train known as the Automated Guideway Transit is on display in UP Diliman.

The train will have five coaches. The first coach is the pilot coach while the fifth will be its power coach.

But unlike the Automated Guideway Transit (AGT), the tram will not have a railway as it will run on existing roads using rubber tires.

“The Cebu City mayor doesn’t want elevated transport because these might ‘uglify’ the city,” said Glicerio Sicat, consultant for the DOST Advanced Transport System.
Experiment

Estacio said the road trains may be used on city roads especially those that are proposed for widening. “The trains haven’t been tested in the metropolis. These were only used inside UP Diliman which is not like the city. You mean to say that we are looking at something that is still an experiment?,” Councilor Margot Osmeña said.

Ruben Almendras, Cebu City Integrated Traffic Operations Management (Citom) board chairman, said like Baguio City, Cebu City is also an ideal place to test the DOST road trains. “We have to know if this will really work in a real urban environment,” he said.

Councilor Alvin Dizon said he was concerned how this would impact on the passenger jeepney drivers “There should be series of consultations,” he said.

Separate roads

Sicat said no jeepney driver will be left jobless due to road train operations. But he said there may be changes in their routes so they would instead serve as “feeders” or shuttle providers bringing passengers to and from the designated road train stations.

“In turn, the more shortened travels they make, the more money they will have,” he said.
Estacio said a road train is expected to cost P40 million each. Of that amount P32.4 million will be spent on the fabrication of its coaches.

“What the city needs to provide are dedicated lanes, paved roads and a road train route,” she said.
Sicat said road train operations won’t hamper BRT operations in the city if it pushes through because both of them will be assigned separate roads.

Velez said the manufacture of fabricated coaches will be done here because they already identified local manufacturers.