The “Queen City of the South,” Cebu City will be the first city in the Philippines who will introduced the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) or Cebu Mass Transit Project which already reached the final stage of planning. The mass transit system for Cebu is currently in the final phase of design review with procurement scheduled to begin in the latter part of this month or first week of April.
According to BRT Project Manager Rafael Yap, the project completion is estimated to reach the fourth quarter of 2018. This was announced by the project manager during a meeting with Metro Cebu Development and Coordinating Board, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Japanese Embassy.
The BRT Project is Cebu City is funded by loans from the World Bank ($116 million) and the Clean Technology Fund ($25 million). The Philippine government will provide counterpart financing amounting to $87.5 million.
Cebu City residents will improve their mobility as the BRT was projected to carry 330,000 passengers on a daily basis. It will also reduce pollution and increased travel safety in the country’s highly progressive city outside of Metro Manila.
The new BRT, a first of it’s kind in the Philippines comprises 11 kilometers of segregated busways from Bulacao to Ayala Mall along Cebu South Road, N Bacalso Avenue, Osmeña Boulevard and N. Escario Street. A further six kilometers of bus priority lanes at junctions will allow BRT buses to reach Talamban along Gov. M. Cuenco Avenue.
When completed, the Cebu BRT system will have 33 stations, utilizing a total of 176 buses. The buses will pass each station every two to five minute intervals.
BASING KAILANGAN PA TA MUBOTAR NI ROXAS PARA MAHITABO NI HAAAA. KAY DI JOD RABA KO MUBOTAR NIYA.