2 firms eye Pasig River ferry service

MANILA, Philippines - At least two companies have expressed interest in reviving the ferry service along Pasig River to serve as alternative for commuters to avoid the heavy traffic, the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) said.

Transportation and Communications Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said Nautical Transport Services Inc. and Pinoy Catamaran have offered to operate the ferry service along Pasig River.

“There are two proponents, one was the previous proponent and the other is a new entrant. They said they could do it immediately. They are ready to operate in April,” he said.

Nautical Transport Services launched the Pasig Ferry Service during the term of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2007. It used five stations including Escolta, Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), Sta. Ana, Hulo, and Guadalupe that was eventually increased to 14 stations.

The ferry service was suspended indefinitely in February of 2011 due to low passenger turnout.

Pinoy Catamaran, on the other hand, is a new entrant that expressed interest in operating the service along the 27-kilometer stretch of the Pasig River .

“There is a segment that there is demand and they are confident about the business,” Abaya added.

The role of the DOTC, he said, is to issue a franchise and set the fares.

He added that the agency would also lay down a set of parameters to make the operations of the Pasig River ferry service viable.

“Our obligation is to set the fares, issue a franchise, fix up the stations a little, and put in key performance index to make sure they depart and leave on time,” the DOTC chief explained.

He pointed out that it is important for the operator of the ferry service to leave on time so as to keep passengers.

“So I think to keep it viable and passenger interested, we should keep the schedule on time,” he added.

According to him, the DOTC is looking at putting the project under the Aquino administration’s public private partnership (PPP) program.