Gov’t, ALI break ground on P9-B transport terminal

 The government saved P9 billion in the construction of the Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange (ITX) project as the private partner, Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), agreed to waive royalties, or Annual Grantor Payment (AGP), of P277 million per annum for the next 35 years, according to Department of Transportation (DOTr) Arthur Tugade.

The DOTr yesterday led the groundbreaking of the over P5-billion ITX, a state partnership with Ayala Corp. meant to decongest traffic at EDSA and cater to all provincial buses plying the south of Luzon, Visayas and Mindandao destinations.

The Taguig ITX is a 6-storey building on a 5.57-hectare property inside the FTI compound which would house a passenger concourse, a centralized ticketing area plus business and retail establishments. Construction starts by the 2nd half of 2018 and the terminal is scheduled to start operation by 1st half of 2020.

It can accommodate 1,200 public utility buses and vehicles’ bays and parking.  Once completed, it will house around 4,000 buses, with a capacity for 160,000 passengers daily. It will also feature a pedestrian walkway connection to the PNR FTI station and the proposed subway system.

DOTr Secretary Tugade said he asked ALI to forgo the P9-billion AGP. ALI also agreed to share 2% of their income from the commercial spaces to the government, “a win-win solution that will ultimately benefit the Filipino people.”

Taguig ITX transport hub make traveling more convenient by 2020

Earlier today, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) held the ground breaking ceremony of the soon-to-rise Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange (ITX) together with private partner, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI).

The Taguig ITX project is a 6-storey building designed to consolidate several current and proposed modes of transportation in the future. The ITX will house passenger concourse, a centralized ticketing area, and several retail establishments. It will also feature a pedestrian walkway connection to the PNR FTI station and the proposed subway system.

Construction of the Taguig ITX will begin in the second half of 2018 with operations expected to start by the first half of 2020. Upon completion, Taguig ITX is expected to house around 4,000 buses and accommodate 160,000 passengers daily plying the south of Luzon, including Visayas and Mindanao.

During the ground breaking ceremony, DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade announced that the two have agreed to waive the annual grantor payment, which would cost the government a total of Php 9 billion for the construction of ITX, paid to Ayala throughout the span of 35 years.

"Two things will be done -- the P277 million per year for the next 35 years will no longer be paid, saving the government, this country, no less than PhP 9 billion cashout annually... And two, from the start of its commercial operation, until the end of the concession agreement, Ayala Land will share 2% of their income from the commercial spaces in favor of the government," Secretary Tugade said during the groundbreaking of the Taguig ITX, one of the big-ticket infrastructure projects of the Duterte Administration aimed at further decongesting vehicular traffic on EDSA.

Tugade said that the DOTr has managed to come up with the deal after they engaged in discussions with ALI since last year that both parties have agreed to. No specifics however were detailed, but only that it was a win-win for both and even for the Filipino people.

During the ceremony, the Tugade was joined by other members of the BUILD, BUILD, BUILD Team including DPWH Secretary Mark Villar and BCDA president and CEO Vince Dizon. Other high level government officials who attended this morning’s ITX groundbreaking rites at the former NFA warehouse, FTI, Taguig City, include Taguig City Mayor Lani. Cayetano, Cong. Federico Sandoval II (Malabon), Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Danilo Lim, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board Chairman Martin Delgra III, PNR Chairman Roberto Lastimoso and General Manager Junn Magno, NFA administrator Jason Aquino, and PPP Center Executive Director Boyet Pecson.

ALI chairman Fernando Zobel de Ayala , ALI vice chairman and director Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala also graced the ceremony.

Department of Transportation starts Taguig transport terminal project

Going to other parts of the country via bus is going to get a whole lot easier.

The Department of Transportation (DoTr) held the groundbreaking ceremony for the upcoming Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange (ITX) this morning. This means that buses going to various provinces will be moved away from Cubao to this new terminal in the south.

The ITX is a public-private partnership between the government and real estate developer Ayala Land Incorporated. It is part of the administration’s “Build Build Build” initiative which seeks to finish several infrastructure projects by 2022, the year Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s term ends.

Transportation is a big problem in Manila. Although the city has a train system, it only goes to certain areas and routinely breaks down. Major roads are also almost always congested.

If everything goes according to plan, the ITX will be able to take on about 4,000 provincial buses that currently pass EDSA and other major roads by 2020, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.

The ITX will be built inside the 5.6-hectare FTI compound in Taguig and will be dedicated to buses going to and coming from South Luzon, the Bicol region, and the islands of Visayas and Mindanao. Once the ITX is built, buses from those areas will no longer enter EDSA ave and will park in the terminal instead.

The terminal will also be connected to a railway station in the same area.

According to DoTr, the terminal will consist of six floors and will have a passenger terminal, a centralized ticketing area, business establishments, and a parking area for public utility vehicles.

Now, who’s excited to go on a road trip?

Taguig transport terminal breaks ground

An graphic image shows how the Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange would look like when completed in 2020. INQUIRER / JOVIC YEE

Close to 4,000 provincial buses are expected to be taken off of Edsa and other major roads once the Taguig Integrated Terminal Exchange (ITX) becomes operational by the first half of 2020.

On Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade led officials in the groundbreaking ceremony of the second integrated transport terminal meant to not only improve the public’s commuting experience but also decongest Edsa.

To be built in partnership with Ayala Corp., the Taguig ITX will rise inside the 5.6-hectare FTI compound. It will host the provincial buses going to and coming from South Luzon, Bicol, the Visayas and Mindanao.

A scale model of the Taguig ITX is displayed at the groundbreaking of the terminal at the FTI compound. INQUIRER / JOVIC YEE

The six-story building will have a centralized ticketing area, a number of business and retail establishments, and can accommodate an estimated 160,000 passengers daily.

Construction of the terminal is set to start by the second half of this year. To ensure better connectivity, the terminal will be linked to the Philippine National Railways’ FTI station and the proposed subway system. /cbb

More drinking fountains for LRT 1 passengers

Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) has partnered with Maynilad Water Services Inc. in providing its riders with potable water as part of the company’s P500-million thrust to improve the services of the decades-old Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 1.

Tuesday saw the inauguration of five additional drinking fountains in the railway line, bringing the total number of water stations to 10.

Now, more passengers have access to potable water at the Doroteo Jose, Tayuman, R. Papa, United Nations, 5th Avenue, Baclaran, Monumento, Roosevelt, Carriedo and Balintawak stations.

“We are very excited to partner with Maynilad for the GinhaWash program and hopeful to explore more locations for more drinking fountains for our passengers,” LRMC President Juan F. Alfonso said on Tuesday.

LRMC and Maynilad both aim to increase access to water, sanitation and hygiene as part of the improvements being made by LRMC for LRT 1.

“We look forward to more partnerships with Maynilad in the future, for a ‘biyaheng better every day’ experience for our riding public.” Alfonso added.

The private operator started implementing its P500-million station-improvement program in 2015. It is expected to be completed by end-2018.

Meanwhile, the DOTR, LRTA, LRMC and JICA on "The Detailed Design Study of the LRT LINE 1 CAVITE EXTENSION PROJECT Baclaran-Niog"

The existing LRT-1 stations from Baclaran to Monumento, while the North Extension stations Malvar, Balintawak, Roosevelt and Trinoma Common Station using the  "Architectural - Site Development Plan", as well the "Vicinity Map and Location Plan" and "Perspective" in their documents.

LRMC holds the concession for the operations, maintenance and extension of the LRT 1. It signed the agreement with the government on October 2, 2014.

The company will operate and maintain the oldest overhead train system in the Philippines for 32 years.

It is a company led by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Ayala Corp.

TANAUAN | Tanauan City Sports Complex

TANAUAN CITY SPORTS COMPLEX

Components:

1. 5,500 seater INDOOR SPORTS ARENA
2. Oval Track & Field with 4,000 seater GRANDSTAND
3. 3-4 storey building for TANAUAN CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
4. 4 storey SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL DORMITORY BUILDING
5. 3 storey DEPED TANAUAN CITY DIVISION ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
6. 50-meter OLYMPIC SIZE SWIMMING POOL

SM developing more malls in provinces

SM Prime Holdings, Inc. is on track to achieve its five-year road map that targets to double revenues and profits by 2018, supported by its aggressive mall and residential expansion.

The holding firm for country’s richest man Henry Sy, Sr.’s property investments is currently on the last year of this five-year vision, which should see SM Prime book double the P16.3-billion net income and P59.8-billion revenue it had in 2013.

“We are on schedule to meet the five-year program unveiled in 2013. The growth will be driven by malls and residential operation complemented by offices and hotels and convention centers,” SM Prime said in a presentation to investors for the month of January.

For its mall expansion, SM Prime ended 2017 with a total of 9.3 million square meters (sq.m.) in gross floor area (GFA). Of this, 86% are covered by the 67 malls in the Philippines, while 14% come from seven malls in China.

This brings the company closer to its target of 10.5 million sq.m by end-2018.

SM Prime disclosed it has eight malls lined up in the following years, primarily located outside of Metro Manila. The company will be opening in the following locations: SM Center Imus in Cavite, SM City Legazpi in Albay, SM City Urdaneta in Pangasinan, SM City Telabastagan in San Fernando, Pampanga, SM City Ormoc in Leyte, SM City Dagupan, SM Moonwalk Parañaque, and SM Center Cabuyao in Laguna.

“New malls are geared towards provincial cities,” the company said.

SM Development Corp. (SMDC), which manages the company’s residential business, launched a total of 117,424 units across 54 projects under the primary home component in 2017. This marks a 15% increase in number of units year on year.

SMDC would have to launch 11 more projects in 2018 to hit its target of 65 projects by the end of 2018, for a total of 132,424 units.

For the leisure component, SMDC had a total of 16 projects by the end of last year with 2,363 units. The company looks to end 2018 with three more launches for a total of 19, composed of 2,600 units.

SM Prime’s commercial business had a total of six towers in 2017 covering 0.38 million sq.m., the same figure as in 2016. The company is currently constructing ThreeE-Com Center within the Mall of Asia complex, which will be completed in 2018. The tower will add a GFA of 130,000 sq.m., up to SM Prime’s target of 0.51 million sq.m. and seven towers by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, the company has already reached its target of 1,510 rooms and six project for hotels and convention centers. These include six hotels, four SMX Convention Centers, three Megatrade Halls with over 37,000 sq.m. of leasable space.

SM Prime’s earnings grew by 14.9% in the first nine months of 2017 to P20 billion, against the P17.5 billion in the first three quarters of 2016. The company’s revenues climbed by 12% to P64.7 billion in the same period. — Arra B. Francia

Brace for heavier traffic in Quezon City

Work on MRT 7 shifts to North Avenue, Commonwealth area

Traffic flow in Quezon City will go from bad to worse before it gets better. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

The Metro Rail Transit 7 (MRT 7) Project Traffic Management Task Force has advised motorists and commuters to brace for heavier traffic in areas near the rail system’s different construction sites starting today.

Motorists should avoid North Avenue in particular and take alternate routes as workers start installing the rail track toward Quezon Memorial Circle (QMC) station.

The working area will occupy two lanes on the center of North Avenue with three lanes going to QMC and two lanes going to Edsa remaining open to motorists, according to the task force’s advisory.

Work starts on 2 more stations

Motorists should also brace for heavier traffic on both the westbound and eastbound lanes of Commonwealth Avenue as construction of Don Antonio and Batasan stations begin.

On the other hand, work on University Avenue, Manggahan, Doña Carmen and Regalado stations are expected to start in the first quarter of the year.

The 22.8-kilometer-long, 14-station MRT 7 will start in San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan province, and end at Unified Grand Central station on North Avenue, Quezon City.

The rapid transit line, a project of the Aquino administration which began in April 2016, is expected to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2019.

Read more: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/960212/brace-for-heavier-traffic-in-quezon-city#ixzz54EbXqnNd 

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Motorists advised to expect heavy traffic on North Ave. as MRT7 construction begins

The Metro Rail Transit-7 Project Traffic Management Task Force advised the public to expect heavy traffic on roads where construction of the MRT7 is ongoing, according to a report on Unang Balita on Monday by Bernadette Reyes.

Motorists were advised to avoid North Avenue in Quezon City since the installation of the rail tracks going toward the Quezon Memorial Circle will commence on Monday.

The task force said motorists may seek alternate routes.

Construction for the MRT7 is also ongoing on Commonwealth Avenue.

The MRT7 is a 22-kilometer rail transit system with 14 stations connecting North Avenue in Quezon City to San Jose del Monte in Bulacan.

Its stations will include North Avenue, Quezon City Memorial Circle, University Avenue, Tandang Sora, Don Antonio, Batasan, Manggahan, Doña Carmen, Regalado, Mindanao Avenue, Quirino, Sacred Heart, Tala, and San Jose Del Monte.

‘Build’ goes in full swing

The government’s Build, Build, Build program is expected to go on full gear this year, with around 60 projects already under the construction and in the pre-construction phases, said Gil Beltran,  undersecretary of the Department of Finance (DOF).

This developed as DOF  is eyeing to submit to Congress the second package of the comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) as session resumes today.

According to data provided by Beltran, 44 major infrastructure projects are under construction as of January 10, while 15 are in the pre-construction phase.

“The BBB policy will go on a high gear. There are already 60 projects, big ones, the project cost of those is P1.8 trillion mostly funded by (Official Development Assistance). The projects are already under construction or under pre-construction, they are putting the finer details,” Beltran said.

Carlos Dominguez III, finance secretary, said the  roll-out of big-ticket infrastructure projects are proceeding as planned following the signing into law by President Duterte and the subsequent  implementation of the Tax Reform Acceleration and Inclusion Act (TRAIN), which slashes personal income tax rates while raising additional revenues for infrastructure and social services.

About 70 percent of the incremental revenues from the TRAIN have been earmarked for infrastructure, and up to 30 percent for social services.

“It’s coming together. Believe it or not, even I am surprised. The money is coming in from our tax, the loans are coming in, the implementing agencies are getting their act together, its coming together,”Dominguez said.

Included in the projects listed under construction are, among others, the Metro Manila Skyway 3, Mactan-Cebu International Airport Project, CALAX Expressway, MRT7, and the PNR South Long Haul.

Meanwhile, those under the pre-construction phase include the Mega Manila Subway, Metro Manila Bus Rapid Transit, Malolos-Clark Rail, Metro Manila Flood Control, and the North-South Commuter Rail, among others.

The government earlier said that it is planning to spend some P8.4 trillion on its infrastructure program, dubbed as the Build, Build, Build agenda, over the medium term, or about $168billion in the next five years.

Based on earlier estimates done by the National Economic and Development Authority, the Build, Build, Build program is expected to generate 823,696 jobs this year; 1,115,999 jobs in 2019; 1,228,964 jobs in 2020; 1,399,463 jobs in 2021; and 1,705,021 jobs in 2022.

Following the enactment of the TRAIN, which slashes personal income tax rates while raising additional revenues for infrastructure and social services, the DOF is preparing to introduce to Congress the second package of the CTRP, which focuses on reducing corporate income tax (CIT) rates while rationalizing fiscal incentives.

“We should be ready by the 15th, because that’s when they (Congress) will open. We are just putting the final touches on it,” Carlos Dominguez III, finance secretary, said.

“We write to the speaker, we officially transmit to the speaker of the house. Usually, the committee will review it first and then endorse it to the chair. The chair will file it, (it will have a) house number, and then it will be read again in the plenary and referred to the committee. There’s a process,” said Karl Kendrick Chua, finance undersecretary.

Under package two, the DOF aims to lower the CIT rate to 25 percent, while rationalizing incentives for companies to make these “performance-based, targeted, time-bound, and transparent,” Chua said.

Through this proposal, the DOF said the government would be able to ensure that incentives granted to businesses generate jobs, stimulate the economy in the countryside and promote research and development; contain sunset provisions so that tax perks do not last forever; and are reported so the government can determine the magnitude of their costs and benefits to the economy.