Colayco presses CDC on plan for Clark international airport

Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) president and chief executive officer Rufo Colayco is urging the Clark Development Corp. (CDC) to come up with a final masterplan for the Clark international airport, as soon as possible.

Colayco said the continued delay in coming out with the Clark airport masterplan is also causing the delay in the definitioin of the intermodal logistics center for the whole former US Air Force base.

He revealed that there have been two other masterplans for the Clark airport.

The first plan was drawn up during President Ramos’ term. In that plan, Clark was supposed to replace the existing Ninoy Aquino International Airport. The second masterplan also envisioned the same for the Clark airport.

However, the governmenter entered into an agreement with the Philippine International Air Terminals Co. (PIATCO), to expand NAIA with the addition of Terminal 3, thereby ruling out the transfer of NAIA to Clark.

The third masterplan being prepared by the current CDC management envisions Clark to be a passenger and cargo hub. This plan has yet to be completed.

According to Colayco without the airport masterplan, it would be difficult to plan for the various intermodal facilities such as where the proposed 90-kilometer Clark-Subic Expressway would cut through Clark, the location of the Northrail, as well as other access roads within the ecozone.

The definition of the Clark intermodal logistics center, Colayco stressed, is crucial to the creation of a new economic corridor.

Linking Clark with the Subic port facilities would create another international port of entry for international trade apart from the current Manila port facilities.

The proposed 90-kilometer highway, expected to be complted by 2005-2006, will link the two facilities.

Colayco added that planning for the efficient passage of cargo into the out of Clark is also a vital part of the plan.

If the road access to Clark is clogged up, he said it would defeat the government's whole plan for a new international gateway for trade.