A MEETING was held on Saturday, July 6, 2019, to discuss three mass transport facilities under the Integrated Intermodal Transport System (IITS).
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade and Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Lloyd Dino told foreign consultants to submit a detailed engineering design plan in three months.
The meeting was also attended by officials of the World Bank and South Korea.
“All of us will be working together to have partial operability in the Province of Cebu of the BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), the monorail transit (MRT) and the cable system under IITS within the fourth quarter of 2021. We are all committed in achieving that,” Tugade said.
He believed that Cebu’s worsening traffic problem would be solved with an integrated mass transport system.
Tugade and Dino, accompanied by Land Transportation Office 7 Director Victor Caindec, visited the site that has been identified as a “common station” for the BRT, MRT and cable cars adjacent to the IT (Information Technology) Park in Barangay Apas, Cebu City.
Tugade clarified that the completion of IITS projects would take three or more years. He admitted that these are long overdue as President Rodrigo Duterte had instructed the agency to make sure the people of Cebu would enjoy the fruits of the integrated intermodal system as soon as possible.
“We are now in the drawing board. We are doing the detailed engineering design. We are doing the schedules all geared to having partial operability, at the latest, the last quarter of 2021,” Tugade said.
He added that they already have cost estimates for the IITS and they are ready to submit project and funding requirements to the National Economic and Development Authority. (EOB)