Cebu City is lagging by at least three decades in transportation efficiency compared to other cities around the world, Councilor Rey Gealon said on Saturday, Aug. 24, 2024.
He said that the rail system is the future of the city’s public transport.
He said that some of the major cities in the world, such as Dubai, UAE; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; Nis, Serbia; Antalya, Turkey; Raipur, India; Johannesburg, South Africa; Beijing, China; and some Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand, have been operating a metro rail system for the longest time.
The councilor said that it is best to introduce more transport solutions in the city, especially rail transport in the form of trains and trams.
Gealon, along with councilors Joy Pesquera and Jun Osmeña, architect Joseph Michael Espina, City Planning and Development Office head, lawyer Kent Francisco Jongoy, Cebu City Transportation Office deputy chief, and the city’s architects and planners, attended the Transport Summit in Moscow, Russia, on Aug. 21 to 25.
He said that it is now a matter of necessity that Cebu City would welcome proposals for the conduct of feasibility studies for metro rail up to the eventual construction.
Moreover, Gealon said that Cebu City already has in it the supposed efficient operation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT).
“With billions of public funds already spent by the national government for it already, there is no way to think otherwise,” said Gealon.
“It is incumbent upon DOTr (Department of Transportation) to prove doubters wrong,” he added.
Direction
Gealon said the direction of Cebu City’s public transportation is to go electric. Electric buses will be required to be operated along the BRT.
“To begin with, perhaps requiring the winning operator to provide 20 percent of its fleet, escalating to 20 percent per year until all buses will be electric after five years, like the rest of the world,” he said.
“With zero carbon emissions and optimum energy efficiency, that would be our contribution to combating climate change,” he added.
Ferry service
Gealon said a ferry service may be introduced from the South Road Properties to the Marina area near the airport.
He believes that ferry service will surely take away more cars from the road.
Gealon said that cable cars from the city to the airport can also be introduced.
He added that the tram transport service would serve as an alternative public transport service that could be operated intra-city.