Villarete asks council to adopt BRT system

Cebu City Planning and Development Officer Nigel Paul Villarete called on the City Council to pass a resolution declaring the Bus Rapid Transit as the base urban transportation system in the city.

Villarete said he wrote Vice Mayor Michael Rama as well as councilors Gerardo Carillo of the committee on urban planning and development, Sylvan Jakosalem of the committee on energy and transportation, Nestor Archival of the committee on parks and playgrounds, wildlife, ecology, environmental management and Raul Alcoseba of the committee on traffic management, who will co-author the said resolution.

Villarete said the proposed resolution is very necessary in terms of “policy direction” that the choice of the city is the BRT.

He said the BRT is a long-term undertaking and having the resolution will signify that the city has a focused direction.

At the same time, the proposed resolution, Villarete said, will be important in the continuing discussions with the recommending agency which is the Department of Transportation and Communication.

He said a policy direction will really help in getting a national commitment for the project’s realization.

Lastly, Villarete said that the resolution is very vital for the interested financial institutions, which will soon fund the project.

Villarete said if the resolution is approved, his next step will be to urge the cities of Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue and Talisay to do the same.

“However the only hindrance for the project’s realization is when Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue and Talisay cities will not be in favor of the project, but still we will work for it,” Villarete said.

He said they received a letter from one of DOTC’s undersecretaries asking the city to clarify its preference for a mass transport system.

A BRT is a public transport system similar to a light rail transit where buses are used instead of trains and ply at designated lanes.

     Last month, Enrique Peñalosa, the former mayor of Bogota, Colombia, explained the BRT system to the officials. Bogota’s BRT system is one of the most successful in the world. — Ferliza C. Contratista/BRP   (THE FREEMAN)