The launching of the Cebu Rapid Transit (CBRT) system last month was supposed to be star-studded. But for some unannounced reasons, the event has been postponed indefinitely.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (BBM) was scheduled to lead the event with Department of Transportation (DOTr) officials. Also slated to join them were local officials, most notably Cebu Gov. Pamela Baricuatro together with Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival and Vice Mayor Tomas Osmeña, the latter being the original proponent of the project.
The CBRT has been Cebu City’s best hope for an efficient high-capacity public mass transport system for the past two decades, but bumps during the previous administration have slowed and scaled it down. Its financing institution, the World Bank (WB), even expressed concerns over delays that have ballooned the project’s budget estimate from P17 billion to P28.8 billion.
It was only under BBM’s administration that significant project accomplishments were achieved, with two pilot runs done last year. Once fully operational, the CBRT expects to serve 60,000 passengers daily.
Originally designed to run 23 kilometers from Barangay Talamban in the north to Barangay Bulacao in the south of the city, only the 2.4-kilometer section between the Cebu South Bus Terminal and Fuente Osmeña has so far been completed at a cost of P990 million.
Even the link between the Capitol building and Fuente Osmeña was botched after former governor Gwendolyn Garcia raised heritage issues against it.
But with the new provincial and city officials’ joint push for the project together with the DOTr, prospects of continuing the rest of the stretch, although redesigned in some parts and shortened to just around 13 kilometers, appear bright.
Cebu City’s BRT is the first of its kind in the country. Inspired by Brazil’s Curitiba BRT system, it was conceptualized in the early 1990s. Planning began in 2010, and its feasibility studies done in 2012 with support from WB and the French Development Agency. The National Economic and Development Authority, the precursor of the Department of Economy, Planning and Development approved and endorsed it for foreign funding in 2018.
BRTs cost less than Light Railway Transit (LRT) systems which can be 10 times more expensive on a per-kilometer basis. Budget estimates for LRTs range from US$15 to 40 million per kilometer. Rail systems are also costlier to operate and maintain. Besides, studies show that Cebu’s ridership won’t be suitable for LRTs until between 2035 and 2040.
But the project is not without its limitations. For one, it runs on a route that’s too short that some people are known to casually walk through the entire stretch regularly.
Also, the BRT moves along with jeepneys that continue to partly ply its route such as those going to and from Guadalupe, Lahug, Capitol and V. Rama Ave. Modifying the route of these jeepneys so that they would become feeders of the BRT instead of competing against it has yet to be finalized.
Hopefully, however, supporting social programs for operators and drivers who opt out of the public transport sector would help ease traffic since it would lessen the number of vehicles on the route.
Overall, the CBRT is an important milestone in the country’s transport development, demonstrating the government’s resolve to propel Cebu to greater glory. The project’s infrastructure has been built and Cebuanos are now looking forward to its operationalization.
By now, the BRT should already be launched.