INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA — More commuters have been taking the Pasig River Ferry system, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said on Sunday.
If this trend continues, the system would create the positive impact of easing the pressure on buses, jeepneys and the Metro Rail Transit from Pasig City to Manila, and help ease traffic on roads.
During the agency’s weekly radio program, MMDA Pasig Ferry head Rod Tuason said they have been averaging about 500 passengers a day.
“I think the public is choosing the ferry over the bus or other modes of transport since it only takes them 45 minutes to reach Manila from Pasig,” Tuason added noting that travel time between the two points by land transportation would usually take two hours due to traffic.
Last year, records from the Guadalupe Station revealed that more than 100 passengers used the ferry daily, mostly in the morning from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
To accommodate the increasing number of passengers, the Pasig Ferry head said they have been working to add new boats to their existing 16 running along the Pasig River.
Their new commuter boats are also made of fiberglass and have a maximum capacity of 45 passengers each.
The agency has long encouraged the public to patronize the Pasig Ferry System and help lessen the load of the heavily congested Edsa, JP Rizal in Makati City and even those roads leading to Intramuros, Manila, since traffic along the Osmeña Highway has started getting heavy with the construction of the Skyway Stage 3.
The MMDA currently runs 12 stations in Metro Manila including Pinagbuhatan, Maybunga and San Joaquin in Pasig City, Guadalupe and Valenzuela in Makati City, Hulo in Mandaluyong and PUP Sta. Mesa, Sta. Ana, Lambingan, Lawton, Escolta and Plaza Mexico in Manila, according to Tuason.
Fare ranges from P15 to P95 and operating hours are from Monday to Saturday 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The MMDA has also announced its plan to open a new station in Rosario in Pasig City by March, which will be followed by another one in Marikina City.
Tuason has assured commuters that there is no more smell of garbage along the Pasig River because of their regular cleaning and the rise in the volume of water. SFM