Pasig River ferry opening pushed back to end-2006

The soft re-operation of the Pasig River Ferry service has been pushed back to the end of this year from the original June target due to some delays in the construction of the terminals as well as changes to the boat operation.

This was announced yesterday by members of the Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC) during a press conference to update the public on the status of the river ferry project.

According to Chito Macapagal of Unilever, the private sector representative in the PRRC, the commission was "overly ambitious" in setting a June target for the soft re-operation of the Pasig River ferry service.

The PRRC, Macapagal disclosed, did not realize that it should have factored in possible delays caused by the need to secure right-of-way, geologic problems from unexpected rock formations, as well as technical and financial discrepancies by the terminal contractors.

The PRRC also still has to bid out the operation of the electronic ticketing for the ferry service.

Separate biddings, Macapagal said, were conducted for the construction of the terminals, the operation of the ferry service and the operation of the terminals.

Likewise, Macapagal admitted, there have also been some changes with regard to the number and size of the boats to be useds.

From the original 18 boats with a 50 passenger capacity, Macapagal said, the winning ferry operator has reduced the number of boats to about six with a larger passenger capacity of 150.

An initial seven terminals are in various stages of construction with only the Guadalupe terminal almost complete.

The declared winning bidder chosen by the PRRC to operate the ferry service was Nautical Transport Services Corporation, a joint venture between Filipino proponents and an Australian firm with experience in ferry service operations in Sydney.

Only Nautical Transport Services, which is a joint venture between an Australian ferry service firm - SydneySide Cruises – and Filipino partners Eduardo Bondad, Atlanta Industrial and Penta Capital Investments, was able to reach the third stage with a fare quotation of P2.25 per kilometer exclusive of terminal fee.

The Pasig River ferry service operator would be given an exclusive contract to operate the ferry for a period of five years to ensure its profitability.