$1-B light rail system for Cebu proposed

A Cebuano lawmaker has filed a bill proposing to establish a $1-billion new light rail transport (LRT) system in Metro Cebu.

"There is no argument that Metro Cebu desperately needs an efficient and reliable LRT system to keep pace with rapid population growth and economic expansion," Cebu Rep. Eduardo Gullas said.

This need would be addressed in a big way by a fast, safe, convenient and economical LRT system, said Gullas, a former Cebu provincial governor.

"Owing to severe congestion, we now have motor vehicles running 10 to 15 kilometers per hour in many parts of Metro Cebu," Gullas lamented.

Metro Cebu covers the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu and Talisay and the municipalities of Minglanilla, Consolacion, Liloan, Compostela and Cordova.

Under House Bill 3006, the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) would be mandated to prepare and execute a plan to establish and operate the LRT system.

The DOTC would be tasked to draw up feasibility and engineering studies. It would then come up with a plan to acquire the sites, equipment, materials and services for the project.

Project funding would be included in the national budget.

The DOTC actually already has a plan to build a $1-billion LRT system in Metro Cebu. But project implementation lacks visibility.

The DOTC earlier forged a build-operate-transfer agreement with the AMA Group Holdings Corp. for the construction of a 71-kilometer LRT system that would run through Metro Cebu from the municipality of Carcar in the south to Danao City in the north.

Phase 1 would start from Talisay to Mandaue with Cebu City as center of the main line. Phase 2 would extend the main line farther south from Talisay down to Carcar. Phase 3 would stretch the main line farther north from Mandaue up to Danao.

However, project execution remains unclear mainly because the DOTC is not committed to award the project to AMA. The department said it has to get lower offers from other contractors then AMA can then match the best offer.

This, even as the Cebu provincial board has been prodding the DOTC to expedite its detailed study on the viability of the project.

Despite the construction of skywalks and flyovers, the board noted that congestion has not eased because of the continuing surge in traffic volume and the unsound road conditions.

Traffic congestion in Metro Cebu is heaviest for motor vehicles plying the Talisay-Cebu-Mandaue routes and vice versa.