Phase 1 of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project should finally break ground in February, about a year since Japan and the Philippines first agreed on pursuing the program as part of the ambitious infrastructure buildup program of the government.
Its implementing agency, the Department of Transportation (DoTr), previously obtained committed funding from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and involves extending the rail line of the Philippine National Railways (PNR) from the Tutuban Station in Manila to Malolos in Bulacan and all the way to the airport at Clark.
Transportation Undersecretary Timothy John Batan said the first phase of the railway extension project should begin next month.
“Phase 1 is going to start construction in February. That’s for the initial 38 kilometers from Tutuban to Malolos. For the extension to the North, we are starting our procurement already,” Batan told reporters.
According to him, the once problematic infrastructure program is “90 percent free and clear of right of way” problems.
“So, we are going straight to mobilization by February. The remaining 10 percent are just the fringes so full-scale construction will begin,” he added.
“Partial operability by 2022 will cover the entire segment from Clark airport all the way to Blumentritt station in the South. That’s the interchange station with LRT 1 and by second quarter of 2023, full operations will be in place all the way to Los Banos,” Batan said.
PNR General Manager Jun Magno said they will begin commissioning by December 2021, noting that some rail activity should be visible by that time.
“Right now, we are concentrating on the National Capital Region. PNR has alignments from Cabanatuan to Balagtas (Bulacan) so we asked the National Economic and Development Authority to conduct a feasibility study for the Cabanatuan to Makati line,” Magno said.
“We asked them to conduct two studies. One is Cabanatuan to Bulacan and the San Jose, Nueva Ecija to Tarlac connecting to NCR and possibly a feasibility study of the Cagayan tunnel,” he added.
Batan said the line is projected to accommodate around 350,000 passengers per day by 2022 and some 1.1 million passengers after the project is completed.
Magno also said the two mainlines of the PNR extension project can accommodate one million passengers each.
“Each mainline can accommodate 1 million each per day towards Metro Manila. That is our first Metro-grade train system. This is the first one that we’ll have with a much greater [passenger] capacity,” he said.
http://tribune.net.ph/index.php/2019/01/23/nscr-breaks-ground-next-month/
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
Philippines, Japan sign $1.54-billion loan deal on North-South Railway
The North-South Commuter Railway project will 'seamlessly' connect Philippine National Railways lines in Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna
The governments of Philippines and Japan signed an P80.47-billion ($1.54-billion) loan agreement on the 109-kilometer North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) extension project, the biggest project so far under the infrastructure program "Build, Build, Build."
On Monday, January 21, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Director General Shigenori Ogawa signed the first tranche of the multibillion-peso loan deal at the Department of Finance.
The total cost of the project amounted to P628.42 billion ($12.03 billion). JICA and the Asian Development Bank will finance the total loan financing requirement at P488 billion ($9.34 billion).
The signing was witnessed by Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Railways Undersecretary Timothy John Batan, and embassy of Japan Minister Atsushi Kuwabara.
Dominguez said on Monday that the economic benefits of improved mobility once the railway service is completed "will translate into many times over the cost of the project."
"This commuter rail service ought to have been built many years ago. This might have spared our harried commuters all the grief they bear now," Dominguez said.
"But previous governments did not have the fiscal space, did not have the enthusiasm of our international development partners and, most important, did not have the unyielding political will we benefit from today," he added.
Dominguez said that the NSCR project has the "fastest loan processing time" in the history of the Philippines-Japan cooperation.
In November 2018, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee (ICC-CabCom) approved the changes in scope of the 147-kilometer railway system, which included a 76% increase from the previous total costing estimate of P440.88 billion.
The increase in costing was due to a shift in engineering design, increase in the number of trains, and added costs that will cover resettlement activities for the 12,901 informal settler families.
The loan has a maturity period of 40 years, with a 12-year grace period. Non-consulting services under the agreement have an interest rate of 10 basis points per annum, and 1 basis point per annum for consulting services.
This is the second railway loan deal with Japan under the Duterte administration. JICA will also be financing the P18-billion Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) rehabilitation.
Seamless commute
The railway will "seamlessly" integrate the Philippine National Railways (PNR) lines from Central Luzon to Calabarzon:
The 38-kilometer PNR Clark 1 from Tutuban, Manila to Malolos, Bulacan
The 58-kilometer PNR Clark 2 from Malolos, Bulacan to Clark International Airport, Pampanga
The 72-kilometer PNR Calamba running from Solis Street in Tondo, Manila to Los Banos, Laguna
The extension project covers PNR Clark 2 and PNR Calamba lines. Previously, the government had inked a $2.37-billion loan from Japan for the PNR Clark 1 deal in November 2015.
The railway system will also link existing railway lines – Light Rail Transit (LRT) lines 1 and 2, the MRT3, and the upcoming Metro Manila Subway.
Batan said that the NSCR "is more than just another railway," with less travel time from the provinces to Metro Manila.
"The NSCR is more than just another railway project, as it promises to deliver a new way of life to the millions of Filipinos that it will benefit," Batan said.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) expects to have a ridership of 340,000 passengers a day when it partially operates in 2022. By 2023, DOTr expects a ridership of 550,000 passengers when it becomes fully operational.
Initially, the NSCR project was planned to be under a public-private partnership under the Aquino government.
The Duterte administration had called off the auction in 2016.
https://www.rappler.com/business/221610-philippines-japan-sign-loan-deal-north-south-railway
The governments of Philippines and Japan signed an P80.47-billion ($1.54-billion) loan agreement on the 109-kilometer North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) extension project, the biggest project so far under the infrastructure program "Build, Build, Build."
On Monday, January 21, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Director General Shigenori Ogawa signed the first tranche of the multibillion-peso loan deal at the Department of Finance.
The total cost of the project amounted to P628.42 billion ($12.03 billion). JICA and the Asian Development Bank will finance the total loan financing requirement at P488 billion ($9.34 billion).
The signing was witnessed by Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Railways Undersecretary Timothy John Batan, and embassy of Japan Minister Atsushi Kuwabara.
Dominguez said on Monday that the economic benefits of improved mobility once the railway service is completed "will translate into many times over the cost of the project."
"This commuter rail service ought to have been built many years ago. This might have spared our harried commuters all the grief they bear now," Dominguez said.
"But previous governments did not have the fiscal space, did not have the enthusiasm of our international development partners and, most important, did not have the unyielding political will we benefit from today," he added.
Dominguez said that the NSCR project has the "fastest loan processing time" in the history of the Philippines-Japan cooperation.
In November 2018, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee (ICC-CabCom) approved the changes in scope of the 147-kilometer railway system, which included a 76% increase from the previous total costing estimate of P440.88 billion.
The increase in costing was due to a shift in engineering design, increase in the number of trains, and added costs that will cover resettlement activities for the 12,901 informal settler families.
The loan has a maturity period of 40 years, with a 12-year grace period. Non-consulting services under the agreement have an interest rate of 10 basis points per annum, and 1 basis point per annum for consulting services.
This is the second railway loan deal with Japan under the Duterte administration. JICA will also be financing the P18-billion Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) rehabilitation.
Seamless commute
The railway will "seamlessly" integrate the Philippine National Railways (PNR) lines from Central Luzon to Calabarzon:
The 38-kilometer PNR Clark 1 from Tutuban, Manila to Malolos, Bulacan
The 58-kilometer PNR Clark 2 from Malolos, Bulacan to Clark International Airport, Pampanga
The 72-kilometer PNR Calamba running from Solis Street in Tondo, Manila to Los Banos, Laguna
The extension project covers PNR Clark 2 and PNR Calamba lines. Previously, the government had inked a $2.37-billion loan from Japan for the PNR Clark 1 deal in November 2015.
The railway system will also link existing railway lines – Light Rail Transit (LRT) lines 1 and 2, the MRT3, and the upcoming Metro Manila Subway.
Batan said that the NSCR "is more than just another railway," with less travel time from the provinces to Metro Manila.
"The NSCR is more than just another railway project, as it promises to deliver a new way of life to the millions of Filipinos that it will benefit," Batan said.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) expects to have a ridership of 340,000 passengers a day when it partially operates in 2022. By 2023, DOTr expects a ridership of 550,000 passengers when it becomes fully operational.
Initially, the NSCR project was planned to be under a public-private partnership under the Aquino government.
The Duterte administration had called off the auction in 2016.
https://www.rappler.com/business/221610-philippines-japan-sign-loan-deal-north-south-railway
House panel questions route of Metro Manila Subway
A House panel is summoning the inter-agency committee that decided the route of the Metro Manila Subway, saying the chosen route was the costliest of three options.
The House Committee on Metro Manila Development said officials of the committee must explain why the Katipunan route was chosen despite being the "most expensive" and "most problematic" among the 3 routes studied for the project.
Caloocan City Rep. Edgar Erice pointed out that based on submissions of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), the Katipunan route requires a budget of P218 billion compared to P208 billion for the EDSA route and P211 billion for the Greenhills San Juan route.
The lawmaker also said the Katipunan route will affect more residential areas and require more space compared to the 2 other options.
“Mas malaki ang magagambala sa Katipunan, mas mahal, mas malaki (area required) sa Katipunan… mas malaki environmental impact, mas maraming tao maaapektuhan, mas mahal, pero mas pinili n’yo pa din ang Katipunan,” Erice said in a hearing, addressing DOTr Undersecretary for Railways, Atty. Timothy John Batan.
But Batan said the decision was based on the criteria set for the project, alongside the instruction guidelines by a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) design team.
The inter-agency committee is composed of the secretaries of DOTr, Department of Public Works and Highways, National Economic and Development Authority, and the head of the Metro Manila Development Authority, among others.
The first phase will connect Mindanao Avenue to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), with 3 stations set to be operational by 2022, the Department of Finance earlier said. The central zone with 13 stations is expected to be operational by 2025.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/01/21/19/house-panel-questions-route-of-metro-manila-subway
The House Committee on Metro Manila Development said officials of the committee must explain why the Katipunan route was chosen despite being the "most expensive" and "most problematic" among the 3 routes studied for the project.
Caloocan City Rep. Edgar Erice pointed out that based on submissions of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), the Katipunan route requires a budget of P218 billion compared to P208 billion for the EDSA route and P211 billion for the Greenhills San Juan route.
The lawmaker also said the Katipunan route will affect more residential areas and require more space compared to the 2 other options.
“Mas malaki ang magagambala sa Katipunan, mas mahal, mas malaki (area required) sa Katipunan… mas malaki environmental impact, mas maraming tao maaapektuhan, mas mahal, pero mas pinili n’yo pa din ang Katipunan,” Erice said in a hearing, addressing DOTr Undersecretary for Railways, Atty. Timothy John Batan.
But Batan said the decision was based on the criteria set for the project, alongside the instruction guidelines by a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) design team.
The inter-agency committee is composed of the secretaries of DOTr, Department of Public Works and Highways, National Economic and Development Authority, and the head of the Metro Manila Development Authority, among others.
The first phase will connect Mindanao Avenue to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), with 3 stations set to be operational by 2022, the Department of Finance earlier said. The central zone with 13 stations is expected to be operational by 2025.
https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/01/21/19/house-panel-questions-route-of-metro-manila-subway
Public transport mess and traffic congestion
My Cup Of Liberty
By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.
There are many factors to frequent heavy traffic congestion in Metro Manila and other big cities in the provinces. This short article will narrow it down to five factors.
1. INCONVENIENT AND SOMETIMES UNSAFE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
People who live in many villages in Quezon City, Las Piñas and other cities and going to the big commercial and business districts (CBDs) in Makati, Taguig/BGC or Mandaluyong/Ortigas, taking public transportation means multiple rides: (1) tricycle from house to main roads, (2) jeep or bus to train station, (3) MRT or LRT ride, and (4) jeep or long walk to office or meeting places. Going back home, up to eight rides and people are already very tired coming home.
Snatchers and other criminals, sexual molesters can occur in any of those rides or while walking between those six to eight rides. And it is worse during the rainy season.
The solution is to drive their cars or motorcycles. People would rather brave the heavy traffic plus expensive parking fees than endure those multiple rides. Or take transport network vehicle services (TNVS) like Grab or any of its nine competitors now, or a regular taxi.
Below are official data from the Land Transportation Office (LTO). The total registered vehicles include government, diplomatic and for hire vehicles (77,241; 2,837; and 970,427 respectively, in 2017).
There are so many motorcycles and tricycles, 6.2 million in 2017 and probably 7.4 million in 2018. But there are not too many buses, only 34.8 million in 2017.
There are many unregistered vehicles like the “colorum” jeepneys, taxi and buses, and unregistered motorcycles and tricycles like those used by many policemen who drive motorcycles with no plate.
Now there are many point-to-point (P2P) buses with more routes, true. But people still need to ride tricycles or TNVS, taxi, etc. from their house to the P2P bus stations, so some people would still prefer to drive their cars.
2. EXPENSIVE “JEEPNEY MODERNIZATION”
The noisy and often ugly tricycles and jeepneys will soon be replaced by e-trikes and e-jeeps. Silent, no direct pollution, cool. But their cost is high, up to P1.8 million for e-jeeps and P0.6 million for e-trikes. Charging stations are limited too. By November 2018, only about 1,000 e-jeepneys have rolled out, around 169,000 old jeepneys need to be replaced before the end of transition period in 2020. and
3. OLD MRT, UNUSED NEW TRAINS
In the first 40 days of 2018, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) recorded a total of 33 MRT3 glitches, with imperiled passengers having to walk on rail tracks to get off. In addition, only 8-9 trains were running per day in February vs the minimum target of 15 working trains per day. Then the Dalian trains, of which out of 48 unused trains in 2017, only two were deployed as of December 2018.
4. FAILED, DELAYED DOTR PROJECTS DUE TO POLICY CHANGES
The Commission on Audit (CoA) report for 2017 showed that DoTr was unable to fully implement P46.6 billion out of P58.9 billion of funded projects due to frequent policy changes by political leaders and economic managers. Affected were 153 out of 159 DoTr projects like the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit, LRT Line 2 east extension, and LRT Line 1 north extension common station.
5. BUREAUCRACIES IN TNVS
As this column has discussed in previous articles, there are lots of bureaucracies and requirements from the LTFRB before existing TNVS can expand, which reduces the supply of cars and drivers. And there are bureaucracies from the PCC before failing and losing TNVS and TNCs can exit the country. Even exiting from business can cost huge money, so potential big players from abroad would be hesitant to come and do business here.
The bigger the number of inconvenient public transportation like tricycles and jeepneys, the bigger the demand for private cars, which contributes to frequent traffic congestion. Even those “clean” e-trikes are still low-passenger tricycles. We need less of them, not more.
We need more modern public transportation like efficient MRT/LRT, aircon buses and vans, and reliable TNVS. These reduce the need for private car use. And these investments require less bureaucracy, permits and business taxes, not more.
Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers.
minimalgovernment@gmail.com
https://www.bworldonline.com/public-transport-mess-and-traffic-congestion/
By Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr.
There are many factors to frequent heavy traffic congestion in Metro Manila and other big cities in the provinces. This short article will narrow it down to five factors.
1. INCONVENIENT AND SOMETIMES UNSAFE PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
People who live in many villages in Quezon City, Las Piñas and other cities and going to the big commercial and business districts (CBDs) in Makati, Taguig/BGC or Mandaluyong/Ortigas, taking public transportation means multiple rides: (1) tricycle from house to main roads, (2) jeep or bus to train station, (3) MRT or LRT ride, and (4) jeep or long walk to office or meeting places. Going back home, up to eight rides and people are already very tired coming home.
Snatchers and other criminals, sexual molesters can occur in any of those rides or while walking between those six to eight rides. And it is worse during the rainy season.
The solution is to drive their cars or motorcycles. People would rather brave the heavy traffic plus expensive parking fees than endure those multiple rides. Or take transport network vehicle services (TNVS) like Grab or any of its nine competitors now, or a regular taxi.
Below are official data from the Land Transportation Office (LTO). The total registered vehicles include government, diplomatic and for hire vehicles (77,241; 2,837; and 970,427 respectively, in 2017).
There are so many motorcycles and tricycles, 6.2 million in 2017 and probably 7.4 million in 2018. But there are not too many buses, only 34.8 million in 2017.
There are many unregistered vehicles like the “colorum” jeepneys, taxi and buses, and unregistered motorcycles and tricycles like those used by many policemen who drive motorcycles with no plate.
Now there are many point-to-point (P2P) buses with more routes, true. But people still need to ride tricycles or TNVS, taxi, etc. from their house to the P2P bus stations, so some people would still prefer to drive their cars.
2. EXPENSIVE “JEEPNEY MODERNIZATION”
The noisy and often ugly tricycles and jeepneys will soon be replaced by e-trikes and e-jeeps. Silent, no direct pollution, cool. But their cost is high, up to P1.8 million for e-jeeps and P0.6 million for e-trikes. Charging stations are limited too. By November 2018, only about 1,000 e-jeepneys have rolled out, around 169,000 old jeepneys need to be replaced before the end of transition period in 2020. and
3. OLD MRT, UNUSED NEW TRAINS
In the first 40 days of 2018, the Department of Transportation (DoTr) recorded a total of 33 MRT3 glitches, with imperiled passengers having to walk on rail tracks to get off. In addition, only 8-9 trains were running per day in February vs the minimum target of 15 working trains per day. Then the Dalian trains, of which out of 48 unused trains in 2017, only two were deployed as of December 2018.
4. FAILED, DELAYED DOTR PROJECTS DUE TO POLICY CHANGES
The Commission on Audit (CoA) report for 2017 showed that DoTr was unable to fully implement P46.6 billion out of P58.9 billion of funded projects due to frequent policy changes by political leaders and economic managers. Affected were 153 out of 159 DoTr projects like the Cebu Bus Rapid Transit, LRT Line 2 east extension, and LRT Line 1 north extension common station.
5. BUREAUCRACIES IN TNVS
As this column has discussed in previous articles, there are lots of bureaucracies and requirements from the LTFRB before existing TNVS can expand, which reduces the supply of cars and drivers. And there are bureaucracies from the PCC before failing and losing TNVS and TNCs can exit the country. Even exiting from business can cost huge money, so potential big players from abroad would be hesitant to come and do business here.
The bigger the number of inconvenient public transportation like tricycles and jeepneys, the bigger the demand for private cars, which contributes to frequent traffic congestion. Even those “clean” e-trikes are still low-passenger tricycles. We need less of them, not more.
We need more modern public transportation like efficient MRT/LRT, aircon buses and vans, and reliable TNVS. These reduce the need for private car use. And these investments require less bureaucracy, permits and business taxes, not more.
Bienvenido S. Oplas, Jr. is the president of Minimal Government Thinkers.
minimalgovernment@gmail.com
https://www.bworldonline.com/public-transport-mess-and-traffic-congestion/
Sunday, January 20, 2019
Nepo, Yeng to ensure rail project is completed
ALLIES Angeles City mayoralty bet Vice Mayor Bryan Nepomuceno and returning Congressman Joseller “Yeng” Guiao on Friday, January 18, said that they will make sure the construction of the Angeles segment of the planned P225-billion PNR Clark project will not be delayed by local issues and that it will be completed as scheduled.
In a joint statement, Nepomuceno, the official candidate of the Partido Abe Kampampangan and Guiao of the Kambilan Party of Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda, said they are throwing their “100 percent cooperation and support for Secretary Arthur Tugade and the Department of Transportation (DoTr) as they move full steam ahead to see to it that PNR Clark is completed on target.”
Nepomuceno and Guiao issued the statement in reaction to concerns by some lawmakers on the ability of the DOTr to finish on schedule six railway projects that are part of the Build, Build, Build Program, the Duterte administration’s centerpiece infrastructure development thrust.
“I will do everything I can to make sure that construction of the Angeles segment of the planned P225 billion PNR Clark project will not be delayed by local issues the city government has immediate authority and influence to solve,” Nepomuceno said, stressing the critical importance of President Duterte’s railway project connecting Metro Manila to this city and nearby Clark Freeport.
For his part, Guiao said: “I will personally sponsor or co-sponsor House bills that are necessary to finally avoid perennial issues that delay the completion of government infrastructure projects. The early completion of the PNR Clark project is at the top of our agenda as it will benefit all the people of the first district of Pampanga.”
Targeted for completion sometime in 2020, the P225-billion PNR Clark project will cut travel time from Metro Manila to Clark International Airport to just around 55 minutes.
Status of rail projects
In the same statement, Nepomuceno and Guiao noted that during a House Committee on Transportation hearing on Wednesday, Cebu City Representative Raul del Mar observed that the “updates sound very good, but how can you assure us that the DOTr will be able to meet these timelines?”
DOTr officials led by Undersecretary Timothy John Batan briefed lawmakers on the status of six railway projects funded through loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). These projects include the 147-kilometer North South Commuter Railway from Clark in Pampanga to Los Banos in Laguna province, which is projected to cost P777.5 billion; and the 35-km Metro Manila Subway project from Quezon City to Parañaque worth P356 billion.
However, lawmakers noted that a 2017 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) revealed the failed implementation of 153 of 159 DOTr projects worth P58.9 billion, including some railway projects.
According to the COA, the non-implementation of these projects was caused by changes in “policy directions by political leaders and economic managers.”
In February last year, the DOTr announced the revival of the PNR system with a line to the north as part of a bigger development plan for Clark and other cities outside Metro Manila.
The 38-kilometer Phase 1 of the project, which runs through ten stations from Tutuban in Manila to Malolos in Bulacan, is expected to serve around 340,000 people daily on a 35-minute commute.
PNR Clark Phase 2, meanwhile, is 69-kilometer stretch of railways from Malolos to Angeles City and Clark Freeport Zone. This segment will have 17 stations— Tutuban, Solis, Valenzuela, Caloocan, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue, Balagtas, Guiguinto, Malolos, Calumpit, Apalit, City of San Fernando, Angeles City, Clark, Clark International Airport and New Clark City. (JTD)
https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1783690
In a joint statement, Nepomuceno, the official candidate of the Partido Abe Kampampangan and Guiao of the Kambilan Party of Pampanga Governor Lilia Pineda, said they are throwing their “100 percent cooperation and support for Secretary Arthur Tugade and the Department of Transportation (DoTr) as they move full steam ahead to see to it that PNR Clark is completed on target.”
Nepomuceno and Guiao issued the statement in reaction to concerns by some lawmakers on the ability of the DOTr to finish on schedule six railway projects that are part of the Build, Build, Build Program, the Duterte administration’s centerpiece infrastructure development thrust.
“I will do everything I can to make sure that construction of the Angeles segment of the planned P225 billion PNR Clark project will not be delayed by local issues the city government has immediate authority and influence to solve,” Nepomuceno said, stressing the critical importance of President Duterte’s railway project connecting Metro Manila to this city and nearby Clark Freeport.
For his part, Guiao said: “I will personally sponsor or co-sponsor House bills that are necessary to finally avoid perennial issues that delay the completion of government infrastructure projects. The early completion of the PNR Clark project is at the top of our agenda as it will benefit all the people of the first district of Pampanga.”
Targeted for completion sometime in 2020, the P225-billion PNR Clark project will cut travel time from Metro Manila to Clark International Airport to just around 55 minutes.
Status of rail projects
In the same statement, Nepomuceno and Guiao noted that during a House Committee on Transportation hearing on Wednesday, Cebu City Representative Raul del Mar observed that the “updates sound very good, but how can you assure us that the DOTr will be able to meet these timelines?”
DOTr officials led by Undersecretary Timothy John Batan briefed lawmakers on the status of six railway projects funded through loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). These projects include the 147-kilometer North South Commuter Railway from Clark in Pampanga to Los Banos in Laguna province, which is projected to cost P777.5 billion; and the 35-km Metro Manila Subway project from Quezon City to Parañaque worth P356 billion.
However, lawmakers noted that a 2017 report of the Commission on Audit (COA) revealed the failed implementation of 153 of 159 DOTr projects worth P58.9 billion, including some railway projects.
According to the COA, the non-implementation of these projects was caused by changes in “policy directions by political leaders and economic managers.”
In February last year, the DOTr announced the revival of the PNR system with a line to the north as part of a bigger development plan for Clark and other cities outside Metro Manila.
The 38-kilometer Phase 1 of the project, which runs through ten stations from Tutuban in Manila to Malolos in Bulacan, is expected to serve around 340,000 people daily on a 35-minute commute.
PNR Clark Phase 2, meanwhile, is 69-kilometer stretch of railways from Malolos to Angeles City and Clark Freeport Zone. This segment will have 17 stations— Tutuban, Solis, Valenzuela, Caloocan, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue, Balagtas, Guiguinto, Malolos, Calumpit, Apalit, City of San Fernando, Angeles City, Clark, Clark International Airport and New Clark City. (JTD)
https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1783690
Friday, January 18, 2019
DOTr: 'MRT-3 rehabilitation to begin in February'
The “comprehensive” rehabilitation of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3), the rail line along EDSA, will begin next month, according to the Department of Transportation.
DOTr Undersecretary Timothy John Batan told the House of Representatives committee on transportation on Wednesday that the rail system would continue running while being rehabilitated.
He said the newly hired maintenance service provider, a consortium composed of Sumitomo and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan, would do the rehabilitation.
“We intend to restore the system to its original condition. While improvement works are being done, we aim to gradually increase the facility’s ridership from the current 350,000 commuters daily to 550,000,” he said.
He said the upgrade would cover all aspects of the MRT-3’s operation.
The EDSA rail line has been encountering glitches that result in the offloading of passengers.
Recently, the DOTr tested two light rail vehicles (LRVs) or train coaches procured by the Aquino administration from a Chinese company.
Batan was not asked about the China-made LRVs or the ownership issues hounding MRT-3.
While the government runs the rail line, a private firm owns it.
The Aquino administration tried to buy out the private owners, but the Senate blocked the effort by denying the allocated funds in the national budget.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2019/01/18/1885993/dotr-mrt-3-rehabilitation-begin-february
DOTr Undersecretary Timothy John Batan told the House of Representatives committee on transportation on Wednesday that the rail system would continue running while being rehabilitated.
He said the newly hired maintenance service provider, a consortium composed of Sumitomo and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan, would do the rehabilitation.
“We intend to restore the system to its original condition. While improvement works are being done, we aim to gradually increase the facility’s ridership from the current 350,000 commuters daily to 550,000,” he said.
He said the upgrade would cover all aspects of the MRT-3’s operation.
The EDSA rail line has been encountering glitches that result in the offloading of passengers.
Recently, the DOTr tested two light rail vehicles (LRVs) or train coaches procured by the Aquino administration from a Chinese company.
Batan was not asked about the China-made LRVs or the ownership issues hounding MRT-3.
While the government runs the rail line, a private firm owns it.
The Aquino administration tried to buy out the private owners, but the Senate blocked the effort by denying the allocated funds in the national budget.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2019/01/18/1885993/dotr-mrt-3-rehabilitation-begin-february
Lawmaker to DBM: Explain P37-billion deal with ‘consultants’
The majority leader of the House of Representatives on Thursday asked the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to explain the P37-billion contract for consultants that the agency it bidded out last year.
In a news statement, Majority Leader Rolando B. Andaya Jr. said the DBM is not only procuring multibillion big-ticket infrastructure projects, but it has also morphed into a “one-stop megamall” where consultants can bid for billions of pesos in contracts.
Andaya said documents, now in possession of the House Rules Committee, show the DBM-Procurement Service was responsible for bidding more than P37 billion in government contracts for consultants in 2018.
“The biggest contract, worth P14.3 billion, is for Project Management Consultancy for the PNR South Long Haul Project of the North-South Railway Project. It was awarded on October 31, 2018,” he said.
He added almost P11.7 billion was also awarded for General Consultancy for Metro Manila Subway Project Phase 1 (Valenzuela-Parañaque). It was awarded on October 18, 2018.
Andaya said another General Consultancy worth P11.7 billion was bidded for the Metro Manila Subway Project Phase 1 awarded on October 31, 2018.
“The P37-billion contracts for consultants were part of the P168-billion fund that the Department of Transportation obligated to the DBM-Procurement Service for bidding purposes,” he said.
According to Andaya, the documents on the multibillion-peso contracts bidded out by the DBM were turned over to the House Rules Committee by the executive director of DBM-PS, Bingle Gutierrez.
“This is quite alarming. A copy of the 2017 COA report on DBM-PS clearly spelled out the mandate of this office. To quote: The issuance of Administrative Order 17 dated July 28, 2011, reiterated to all government agencies that their procurement of common use supplies shall be done through PS and that the PhilGEPS shall be used in all their procurement activities, including publication of all their bid opportunities and posting of all their awards and contracts, in accordance with Republic Act 9184,” the lawmaker said.
https://businessmirror.com.ph/lawmaker-to-dbm-explain-p37-billion-deal-with-consultants/
In a news statement, Majority Leader Rolando B. Andaya Jr. said the DBM is not only procuring multibillion big-ticket infrastructure projects, but it has also morphed into a “one-stop megamall” where consultants can bid for billions of pesos in contracts.
Andaya said documents, now in possession of the House Rules Committee, show the DBM-Procurement Service was responsible for bidding more than P37 billion in government contracts for consultants in 2018.
“The biggest contract, worth P14.3 billion, is for Project Management Consultancy for the PNR South Long Haul Project of the North-South Railway Project. It was awarded on October 31, 2018,” he said.
He added almost P11.7 billion was also awarded for General Consultancy for Metro Manila Subway Project Phase 1 (Valenzuela-Parañaque). It was awarded on October 18, 2018.
Andaya said another General Consultancy worth P11.7 billion was bidded for the Metro Manila Subway Project Phase 1 awarded on October 31, 2018.
“The P37-billion contracts for consultants were part of the P168-billion fund that the Department of Transportation obligated to the DBM-Procurement Service for bidding purposes,” he said.
According to Andaya, the documents on the multibillion-peso contracts bidded out by the DBM were turned over to the House Rules Committee by the executive director of DBM-PS, Bingle Gutierrez.
“This is quite alarming. A copy of the 2017 COA report on DBM-PS clearly spelled out the mandate of this office. To quote: The issuance of Administrative Order 17 dated July 28, 2011, reiterated to all government agencies that their procurement of common use supplies shall be done through PS and that the PhilGEPS shall be used in all their procurement activities, including publication of all their bid opportunities and posting of all their awards and contracts, in accordance with Republic Act 9184,” the lawmaker said.
https://businessmirror.com.ph/lawmaker-to-dbm-explain-p37-billion-deal-with-consultants/
Thursday, January 17, 2019
DPWH dealing with right of way issues, says Villar
Public Works Secretary Mark Villar on Wednesday said that the government had achieved “significant progress” in dealing with right of way problems, especially in big-ticket projects, since the Duterte administration came to office.
Villar said in a statement that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) had been able to “expedite the acquisition process” since he issued Department Order No. 65, which created a right of way task force, in May last year.
With the task force working, the DPWH managed to settle within a year and seven months all right of way issues in the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) Harbor Link Segment 10 project, which had been stalled for over three decades, he added.
Passable this month
It acquired 100-percent possession of the project site in December last year, Villar said.
“We are happy to announce that the NLEx Harbor Link Project will be accessible to the public by January. When this is completed, travel time from C3 in Caloocan and NLEx will be reduced to 10 minutes,” he said.
The project consists of a 5.65-kilometer elevated expressway that stretches over NLEx from MacArthur Highway in Karuhatan, Valenzuela City, cuts through Malabon City and passes over C3 Road in Caloocan City, and the 2.6-km section between C3 Road and R10 in Navotas City.
“The next phase will connect it to R10 and reduce travel time from Port Area in Manila to Quezon City to approximately 10 minutes,” Villar said.
Decentralization
The DPWH is now concreting the additional 600-meter segment that would make 2.7 km of Mindanao Avenue Extension passable within the first quarter of this year.
“The project was started in the 1980s but was stopped for decades due to right of way issues. We are happy that it was during the term of President Duterte that we are able to deliver the project,” Villar said.
DO 65 helped to “decentralize and rationalize” DPWH processes, according to Abdul Halim Diron, chief of the agency’s Right-of-Way Acquisition and Enforcement Division.
“This time, instead of just the secretary, certain acts can already be performed by the regional directors and directors in the central office. If it’s a [regional] project, the regional director can already validate and approve transactions. So that helps hasten the acquisition,” Diron said in an interview on Wednesday.
The order, he said, also cleared the way for the DPWH to improve its legal processes, with each regional office now having a legal division that deals with right of way matters.
If before there was only one lawyer handling a problem in an area, now there are at least five, he added.
The announcement of improvements came amid reports of projects being delayed because of unresolved right of way issues.
Diron attributed the delay in right of way payments to due diligence.
‘Improper payment’
The DPWH does not want “improper payment” to be made to landowners, he said.
Diron explained that in due diligence, certain problems may arise and cause delay in the release of payments, such as a landowner’s failure to submit proper documents or the requirement for the DPWH to prove that private property will indeed be affected by the project.
“You have to understand that this is taxpayer money that we are using and we have to comply with Commission on Audit (COA) rules on payments. Our process here, as well as in [the] COA, is really document-based. It relies so much on official records that it could take a while to obtain them,” Diron said.
Earlier this week, some 180 residents of Sariaya, Quezon province, reported that they had yet to be compensated for their properties that were affected by the construction of a 7.2-km, P467-million bypass whose development began three years ago.
The local public works office said some of the landowners had failed to submit proper documents, while the papers of those who had met the requirement were undergoing verification and authentication.
Diron said it was “not the practice” of the DPWH to start a project before acquiring right of way, noting that problems were inevitable once the project got started.
“Sometimes you can only spot an issue upon implementation. Let’s say you conducted a survey, made alignment plans then once you go down the landowner dies or sells his property … That’s where challenges crop up on our part. They really arise during implementation,” he said.
Balance of interests
Even after a court has decided in favor of the government in instances of expropriation, it also doesn’t mean that payments will be done immediately, Diron said.
“One of the limitations is if [the fund] is not allotted for a particular purpose, it needs appropriation. We have to balance the interest of the landowner [with] the interest of [the] government, which is to safeguard public funds and make sure that [payment] goes to the proper person,” he said.
It is easy to pay landowners, but it is so hard to undo an improper payment, Diron said.
“If there is delay, it’s for the benefit of the public and landowner,” he said.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1074029/dpwh-dealing-with-right-of-way-issues-says-villar
Villar said in a statement that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) had been able to “expedite the acquisition process” since he issued Department Order No. 65, which created a right of way task force, in May last year.
With the task force working, the DPWH managed to settle within a year and seven months all right of way issues in the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) Harbor Link Segment 10 project, which had been stalled for over three decades, he added.
Passable this month
It acquired 100-percent possession of the project site in December last year, Villar said.
“We are happy to announce that the NLEx Harbor Link Project will be accessible to the public by January. When this is completed, travel time from C3 in Caloocan and NLEx will be reduced to 10 minutes,” he said.
The project consists of a 5.65-kilometer elevated expressway that stretches over NLEx from MacArthur Highway in Karuhatan, Valenzuela City, cuts through Malabon City and passes over C3 Road in Caloocan City, and the 2.6-km section between C3 Road and R10 in Navotas City.
“The next phase will connect it to R10 and reduce travel time from Port Area in Manila to Quezon City to approximately 10 minutes,” Villar said.
Decentralization
The DPWH is now concreting the additional 600-meter segment that would make 2.7 km of Mindanao Avenue Extension passable within the first quarter of this year.
“The project was started in the 1980s but was stopped for decades due to right of way issues. We are happy that it was during the term of President Duterte that we are able to deliver the project,” Villar said.
DO 65 helped to “decentralize and rationalize” DPWH processes, according to Abdul Halim Diron, chief of the agency’s Right-of-Way Acquisition and Enforcement Division.
“This time, instead of just the secretary, certain acts can already be performed by the regional directors and directors in the central office. If it’s a [regional] project, the regional director can already validate and approve transactions. So that helps hasten the acquisition,” Diron said in an interview on Wednesday.
The order, he said, also cleared the way for the DPWH to improve its legal processes, with each regional office now having a legal division that deals with right of way matters.
If before there was only one lawyer handling a problem in an area, now there are at least five, he added.
The announcement of improvements came amid reports of projects being delayed because of unresolved right of way issues.
Diron attributed the delay in right of way payments to due diligence.
‘Improper payment’
The DPWH does not want “improper payment” to be made to landowners, he said.
Diron explained that in due diligence, certain problems may arise and cause delay in the release of payments, such as a landowner’s failure to submit proper documents or the requirement for the DPWH to prove that private property will indeed be affected by the project.
“You have to understand that this is taxpayer money that we are using and we have to comply with Commission on Audit (COA) rules on payments. Our process here, as well as in [the] COA, is really document-based. It relies so much on official records that it could take a while to obtain them,” Diron said.
Earlier this week, some 180 residents of Sariaya, Quezon province, reported that they had yet to be compensated for their properties that were affected by the construction of a 7.2-km, P467-million bypass whose development began three years ago.
The local public works office said some of the landowners had failed to submit proper documents, while the papers of those who had met the requirement were undergoing verification and authentication.
Diron said it was “not the practice” of the DPWH to start a project before acquiring right of way, noting that problems were inevitable once the project got started.
“Sometimes you can only spot an issue upon implementation. Let’s say you conducted a survey, made alignment plans then once you go down the landowner dies or sells his property … That’s where challenges crop up on our part. They really arise during implementation,” he said.
Balance of interests
Even after a court has decided in favor of the government in instances of expropriation, it also doesn’t mean that payments will be done immediately, Diron said.
“One of the limitations is if [the fund] is not allotted for a particular purpose, it needs appropriation. We have to balance the interest of the landowner [with] the interest of [the] government, which is to safeguard public funds and make sure that [payment] goes to the proper person,” he said.
It is easy to pay landowners, but it is so hard to undo an improper payment, Diron said.
“If there is delay, it’s for the benefit of the public and landowner,” he said.
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1074029/dpwh-dealing-with-right-of-way-issues-says-villar
Don’t delay railway projects, lawmakers urge DOTr
Lawmakers pressed the Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Wednesday to ensure that six railway projects, including a subway in Metro Manila, would not be hounded by delays that plagued past projects.
“The updates sound very good… but how can you assure us that the will be able to meet these timelines?” Cebu City Rep. Raul del Mar asked DOTr officials at the hearing of the House committee on transportation.
The officials led by Undersecretary Timothy John Batan briefed members of the House of Representatives on the status of railway projects under the Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program.
6 railway projects
With loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the DOTr has lined up six railway projects, including the 147-kilometer North South Commuter Railway from Clark in Pampanga to Calamba City in Laguna province, which is projected to cost P777.5 billion; and the 35-km Metro Manila Subway project from Quezon City to Parañaque worth P356 billion.
It is also pursuing the P16.3-billion rehabilitation of Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 3 on Edsa, and the P12.9-billion expansion of Light Rail Transit (LRT) 1 to Cavite province and LRT 2 (Antipolo City segment).
The DOTr is also funding the establishment of a Philippine Railway Institute, which would provide training and accreditation of workers in the country’s railway industry.
Delays in 153 projects
Lawmakers, however, expressed concern that these projects may not be finished as scheduled and would entail added costs for the government.
In its 2017 report, the Commission on Audit (COA) questioned the failed implementation of 153 of 159 DOTr projects worth P58.9 billion, which included a number of railway projects.
The COA blamed changes in “policy directions by political leaders and economic managers.”
Batan assured lawmakers that the DOTr had set up a monitoring facility being hosted by the National Economic and Development Authority to ensure that the timelines were followed.
He said the MRT 3 rehabilitation project was in full swing following the signing of the contract on December 28, 2018 with the original Japanese contractor, Sumitomo Corp. The project is to be completed by March 2021.
Overhaul of trains
The project involves rehabilitation and upgrade of the railway system to its original “as-designed” state, and overhaul of 72 trains and replacement of tracks, as well as the upgrade of the signaling, power supply and communications systems.
Batan said the DOTr was set to demolish about 100 concrete piers of the unfinished phase of the Northrail project from Tutuban in Manila to Malolos City in Bulacan province to pave the way for the construction of a new railway structure.
The DOTr is relocating informal settlers living along the tracks, as well as bidding out contracts for the civil works and purchase of coaches.
The railway project’s southern end will extend from Tutuban to Calamba City, a stretch of 53 km, and will cut down travel time to one hour. It is set to be started in the second quarter of the year, and will be completed by 2023.
Construction of the Metro Manila Subway project is set to start in the first quarter and is expected to break ground this month, according to Batan. It is due to be completed by 2025.
The DOTr expects the subway to cut travel time from Quezon City to Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Parañaque City to 42 minutes, and will serve some 370,000 passengers daily in its opening year.
WHAT WENT BEFORE: The Northrail Project
The Northrail Project of the Arroyo administration has been revived as the Philippine National Railway Clark (PNR Clark), one of the “big-ticket projects” of the Duterte administration.
As planned during the term of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the Northrail would extend the line in Manila northward to Bulacan province. Its first section would extend from the old Tutuban station in Manila to Malolos in Bulacan.
In 2008, Rodolfo Noel Lozada Jr., star witness in the Senate inquiry into the controversial NBN-ZTE deal, disclosed that the Chinese businessmen, whom then Commission on Elections Chair Benjamin Abalos Sr. met with in January 2007, said they had been promised that the NBN project would be done on a loan basis just like the Northrail.
Then Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile also alleged that then Speaker Jose de Venecia was the main lobbyist for the project which, he said, was exorbitantly priced at $503 million for a 32-kilometer railroad.
Enrile said the terms of the loan were skewed unfairly in China’s favor.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said in February last year that it was reviving the PNR system with a line to the north as part of a bigger development plan for Clark and other cities outside Metro Manila, Phase 1 is the 38-km segment from Tutuban to Malolos, with 10 stations. It is expected to service 340,000 people daily in its opening year and would take 35 minutes for the trip.
The contract for the construction supervision and tender assistance consultant for PNR Clark Phase 1 was signed on Dec. 1, 2017.
In April last year, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said preconstruction activities for Phase 1 started in January with actual construction targeted by November last year.
Phase 2 is a 69-km stretch from Malolos to Clark Field in Pampanga province.
It will have 17 stations—Tutuban, Solis, Valenzuela, Caloocan, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue, Balagtas, Guiguinto, Malolos, Calumpit, Apalit, San Fernando, Angeles, Clark, Clark International Airport and New Clark City.
The DOTr expects to complete the P225-billion Manila-Clark railway project in 2020. A trip to Clark International Airport from Metro Manila is expected to take 55 minutes. —Inquirer Research
SOURCES: INQUIRER ARCHIVES, DOTR WEBPAGE AND FB
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1074035/what-went-before-the-northrail-project
As planned during the term of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the Northrail would extend the line in Manila northward to Bulacan province. Its first section would extend from the old Tutuban station in Manila to Malolos in Bulacan.
In 2008, Rodolfo Noel Lozada Jr., star witness in the Senate inquiry into the controversial NBN-ZTE deal, disclosed that the Chinese businessmen, whom then Commission on Elections Chair Benjamin Abalos Sr. met with in January 2007, said they had been promised that the NBN project would be done on a loan basis just like the Northrail.
Then Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile also alleged that then Speaker Jose de Venecia was the main lobbyist for the project which, he said, was exorbitantly priced at $503 million for a 32-kilometer railroad.
Enrile said the terms of the loan were skewed unfairly in China’s favor.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said in February last year that it was reviving the PNR system with a line to the north as part of a bigger development plan for Clark and other cities outside Metro Manila, Phase 1 is the 38-km segment from Tutuban to Malolos, with 10 stations. It is expected to service 340,000 people daily in its opening year and would take 35 minutes for the trip.
The contract for the construction supervision and tender assistance consultant for PNR Clark Phase 1 was signed on Dec. 1, 2017.
In April last year, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said preconstruction activities for Phase 1 started in January with actual construction targeted by November last year.
Phase 2 is a 69-km stretch from Malolos to Clark Field in Pampanga province.
It will have 17 stations—Tutuban, Solis, Valenzuela, Caloocan, Meycauayan, Marilao, Bocaue, Balagtas, Guiguinto, Malolos, Calumpit, Apalit, San Fernando, Angeles, Clark, Clark International Airport and New Clark City.
The DOTr expects to complete the P225-billion Manila-Clark railway project in 2020. A trip to Clark International Airport from Metro Manila is expected to take 55 minutes. —Inquirer Research
SOURCES: INQUIRER ARCHIVES, DOTR WEBPAGE AND FB
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1074035/what-went-before-the-northrail-project
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