Severe traffic congestion is a perennial problem for Metro Manila residents, including IT professional Johann Natividad, who lives in Mandaluyong City, not too far from his office in Makati City.

Yet, Natividad chooses to drive his own car instead of taking public transport. His reasons are likely shared by a multitude of others: necessity and convenience.

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“If only public transport here were better, more efficient and comfortable, then I would choose that,” said Natividad, who admits to feeling guilty whenever he drives alone to work and observes the sea of other “lonely” drivers on the road.

“The roads are for broader public use, not just for individuals driving their cars,” he said. “A lot of people just choose to buy cars because it’s hard to commute,” he added.

More than 180 cities

If public transport were to be improved, Natividad said he’d prefer a bus system, more specifically a bus rapid transit system, or BRT, that has been adopted in over 180 cities globally since it was introduced in Curitiba, Brazil, in 1974.

In Asia, BRT systems can be found in Jakarta, Indonesia; Seoul, South Korea; Bangkok, Thailand and Guangzhou, China, where a dedicated bus lane with specialized buses and stations make it an efficient option.

A paper by Dutch economist Coen Damen for the Asian Institute of Management provides more details.

Damen wrote that a BRT system’s stations resemble that of a train or subway, where buses have the same height as the station’s platforms. This ensures more rapid loading and unloading of passengers.

“This means that buses that are currently used on regular bus lines cannot be used for a BRT. Regular bus drivers also need extra training to be able to operate a BRT bus,” Damen wrote.

Electronic payment, Wi-Fi

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The Department of Transportation (DOTr) also wants extra requirements: sturdy, low-emission bus units to reduce air pollution, better security, friendly to riders with disabilities, electronic payments and Wi-Fi internet.

Metro Manila’s planners early on had bet on elevated trains like the Light Rail Transit Line 1 and Line 2 and Metro Rail Transit 3 to move millions of people efficiently.

But years of neglect mean these train systems have fallen significantly behind in terms of reliability. And while improvements are being put in place—the LRT-1’s operations were privatized, MRT-3 has a new maintenance provider, and new, ambitious overhead train projects and even an Edsa subway system are being proposed—these projects are still many years away and would likely come at a great cost.

Given its relative simplicity, the BRT can be implemented within a shorter time frame and offers long-term benefits.

BRTs have been discussed in previous administrations, with inventor Francis Yuseco pushing for one that he calls PRT, after his Philtrak Rapid Transit concept.

And while BRTs were never fully implemented in previous administrations, a strong shift in this direction seems to be in the offing, with the National Economic and Development Authority board approving the P37.76-billion Metro Manila BRT project in September.

48.6-km system

Approved was a 48.6-kilometer system covering Monumento in Caloocan up to Diosdado Macapagal Avenue/Roxas Boulevard in Pasay, with integrated routes between the Ortigas Business District, Bonifacio Global City and the Makati Business District.

Also being eyed is a link to Metro Manila’s airport terminals as well as connections to integrated transport hubs that would rise in the north, south and southwest parts of Metro Manila.

One of BRT’s staunchest supporters in government today is Robert Siy, DOTr’s senior adviser for planning.

“We need to make our buses and other forms of public transport of high quality so that people will not shift to cars,” he said. “A lot of people are opting to buy cars because our public transit system is currently low quality.”

Starting with a road-based public transport makes sense, as buses, jeepneys and taxis move 61.6 percent of passengers in Metro Manila compared with 32.6 percent of passengers on cars and motorcycles, and 5.8 percent of passengers taking the trains, the DOTr said.

The first BRT project was supposed to open in Cebu, although delays meant the P10.6-billion project would be finished by 2019. Siy said the Metro Manila project was also expected to be finished around the same time, assuming the timely delivery of right-of-way.

Central corridor, 63 stations

The centerpiece of the Metro Manila project will be the so-called central corridor BRT, which will have 63 stations.

Siy said much of the capital expenses would be used to build BRT infrastructure, including the train stations.

Bus operators, who will be invited to join the project later, can provide the bus units that must however comply with DOTr specifications.

Siy said funding options for the government’s share have yet to be finalized, but he noted the state may tap overseas development assistance loans.

On Edsa, big changes are expected with the BRT, starting with the removal of the so-called yellow lane that public buses currently use. “We believe that right on Edsa, there is sufficient space for the BRT to be along the center island. So along Edsa, the stations would largely be underneath the MRT-3,” Siy said.

“Once we bring the BRT on Edsa and buses are restricted to the middle (lane), there would be a more efficient flow for private cars. We would no longer have conflicts between cars and buses (jockeying for) the curb-side lanes,” he added.

Siy said buses would mostly travel along a single lane, but there would be an additional “passing lane” at the stations. The DOTr also needs to identify four to six sites to serve as bus garages that would likely be located on the “outskirts” of Metro Manila.

1.6M passengers daily

Once rolled out, the BRT could initially serve about 1.6 million Metro Manila commuters per day, said Siy, adding the figure could easily be ramped up to more than 2 million passengers a day with the addition of higher-capacity buses.

He said an average 12-meter bus could accommodate 80 passengers, with seating capacity for about 30 people. All buses will be air-conditioned.

Because the buses run on dedicated bus lanes and because technology will play a key part in the loading and unloading of passengers, travel time would be cut significantly, Siy said.

Traveling from Fairview in Quezon City to Makati takes an average of 2 hours and 52 minutes now. With the BRT, travel time would be slashed by more than half to 1 hour and 9 minutes, the DOTr official said. BRT trips for this route would cost about P64 per one-way travel, the same as regular buses today.

Siy said DOTr projections showed the BRT was a sustainable system and would not require subsidies—unlike the LRT and MRT—because it requires a relatively low cost to build. In Damen’s paper, the BRT typically costs about 10 percent of a metro rail system and could be finished in one to two years compared to four to 10 years for a subway system.

The very business model of BRTs would also upend the current practice.

Incentives to operators

According to Siy, the government will collect the fare revenue while bus operators would be paid on a per-kilometer basis and based on how well they serve the public. “Performance is measured according to things like timeliness, or breakdowns or even the driver’s demeanor—is he rude, unkempt or has bad behavior? They can be penalized,” he said.

“We are now in dialogue with the bus industry,” Siy said. “The philosophy is that existing bus operators should have preference in becoming BRT bus operators.” There would also be “some form of competitive bidding,” he added.

“We believe that with the BRT, the existing bus industry can be more stable and more profitable since it will attract more public transport users,” he said.

Siy said the DOTr plans to include an “elaborate network” of pedestrian walkways and bikeways to go with the BRT. The centerpiece is a system that would span parts of the Marikina River, Pasig, Makati, C-5 and Bonifacio Global City.

“One can bike all the way from the Marikina riverbank to Ayala Avenue,” Siy said. “This would be a highly innovative and pro-poor infrastructure project.”

Once all done, the BRT, along with new railway and road projects, could finally give Filipinos like Natividad and millions of others the world-class public transport options they deserve./rga

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