MANILA, Philippines — The proposal to equip Pampanga with a mass transport system is seen to attract more businesses and investments in the province and eventually decentralize and decongest Metro Manila.
During the presentation of the Pampanga Mass Transit System study to the National Economic Development Authority (Neda) on Tuesday, team leader Dr. Hussein Lidasan said they seek a viable, environment-friendly transportation mode for the province.
“The project hopes to establish a transit system that will guarantee inclusive mobility and accessibility in the province, provide connectivity to an urban center, production areas, residential areas, commercial and industrial centers, and institutional and services areas,” the proposal said.
“(The project will) be anchored on clean technology for an environmentally sustainable province and be supported by smart technology system for efficient and reliable operation and efficient fare collection system,” it added.
The mass transit project is a part of the Pampanga Megalopolis Program, which outgoing House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo would be a part of a consultant.
Arroyo has signified her desire to retire from politics but said she is willing to help in developing her home province.
The Speaker was also present when Lidasan and his team presented the study to Neda at the House of Representatives.
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According to Lidasan, their study identified that what Pampanga needs is a commuter line, specifically light or medium rail system.
“For example, nakita natin ang kailangan pala is more of a commuter line. Then that will either be LRT (light rail system) or a medium rail system. And it will accommodate approximately 400,000 to 750,000 people,” Lidasan said.
“If it is a feeder line, it would be a monorail or BRT (bus rapid transit),” he added.
Part of the study, Lidasan said, was to analyze the “traffic-generating land use of the province,” which will guide the network of stations in the transit system.
He added that value engineering/value analysis (VE/VA) was conducted to figure out the alignment of the transport system needed.
“The VE/VA is an analysis wherein we will look at the best way of meeting the objectives without necessarily reducing the cost or increasing the cost but to look at the value that will meet the objectives of our project,” he noted. (Editor: Eden Estopace)