MANILA, Philippines – After a series of delays, the Organized Bus Route System will finally be operational by the end of the year, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority said Tuesday.

MMDA Traffic Operations Center executive director Angelito Vergel de Dios said preparations for the scheme were all going well as planned.

The agency is particularly keen on reviving the OBR in the hope of getting a $1 million grant from the World Bank (WB) as part of its carbon credit program.

The WB rewards efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in cities.

Vergel de Dios said MMDA officials and World Bank representatives met Tuesday to discuss the OBR, particularly its time frame.

“The World Bank people said they wanted the OBR to be operational by the end of the year. So we’re speeding up things,” he said.

“We can continue the project even without their help but $1 million will really go a long way,” Vergel de Dios added.

Through the OBR, the MMDA seeks to make efficient the system of dispatching buses from designated loading stations by using surveillance cameras and microchip tags to keep track of their whereabouts.

On a “first on, first off” basis, buses shall line up at MMDA-established terminals where they will wait for their turn to be sent to their destinations.

The deadline for the installation of microchips on buses is Oct. 31, after which no bus shall be allowed to ply Edsa without one, Vergel de Dios said.