LRT and BRT for Cebu City?

Dino also deserves appreciation for agreeing with the solutions that Secretary Tugade provided

In an effort perhaps to avoid hurting the egos of some government officials, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has come up with a solution to the burgeoning traffic problem not only in Cebu City but also in the neighboring cities and towns comprising Metro Cebu.

Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Lloyd Dino announced that the DOTr, through Secretary Arthur Tugade, will establish an Integrated Inter-modal Transport System (IITS) that will include both the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system and the light rail train (LRT). Dino and Tugade call it “basket of solutions.”

Whatever is the intention of the DOTr secretary Tugade in coming up with what a “basket of solutions,” Metro Cebu’s need for a mass transport system is long overdue. What happens now is that the government is catching up instead of being ahead in solving the traffic problem.

Some considered as political the traffic solution that Secretary Tugade offered for Metro Cebu. While he earlier said that the BRT is not viable in Cebu City because of its narrow roads, now he is endorsing the BRT, with the caveat that it should only ply in six-lane roads. But how many six-lane roads does Cebu City have?

The BRT was the brainchild of Mayor Tomas Osmeña. When former mayor Mike Rama took over, the implementation of the BRT was stalled. When Mayor Tomas won the 2016 elections against Rama, he revived the plan to implement the BRT. However, the implementation was stalled again after Presidential Assistant Dino blocked the project because he wants an LRT.

Dino said most of the roads for the BRT routes are narrow, particularly the Banilad-Talamban route. Mayor Tomas, however, suspects Dino’s reason in blocking the BRT project is personal. To recall, Mayor Tomas scuttled Dino’s Ciudad project). which was a joint venture with the Province of Cebu during former governor Gwen Garcia’s term.

The DOTr’s “basket of solutions” for the traffic in Cebu City and in Metro Cebu should be welcomed by the officials of the local government units. Talisay City Mayor Eddie Gullas must be more than glad to know that his proposed solutions to the traffic woes in Metro Cebu is now being revived by the DOTr. Mayor Gullas, who was at that time at odds with Mayor Tomas, didnn’t want to discuss his BRT/LRT proposal. Gullas said “I don’t want our relationship to worsen.”

Think about it. Mayor Gullas’s proposal for an LRT/BRT solution to traffic woes in Metro Cebu was raised when Noynoy Aquino was president yet up to now it has not even touched ground, so to speak, because of too much politics. At one point, Secretary Tugade even announced the scrapping of the BRT project. It appears that Mayor Tomas, still got what he wants. Of course, the BRT is not for Mayor Tomas but for the city’s commuters, who already have suffered so much due to the worsening traffic situation.

Dino also deserves appreciation for agreeing with the solutions that Secretary Tugade provided, He finally saw that the BRT and the LRT are complimentary services. But would Mayor Tomas still insist that the BRT would ply in two-lane roads?

But when will the LRT and BRT projects start?