Cebu City gov’t okays soil drilling for monorail

The Cebu City government has allowed the proponents of the P63-billion Metro Cebu Monorail to conduct soil drilling activity in the city.

City Administrator Nigel Paul Villarete said the soil drilling activity will be done on Natalio Bacalso Avenue and M.C. Briones Street.

But he said the proponents must also ask permission from other concerned government agencies and property owners.

“Coordinate with Cebu City Transportation Office, get permission from Department of Public Works and Highways, get permission from private land owners,” read a portion of Villarete’s note to Systra Philippines, Incorporated.

Philtram Transportation Consortium, Inc. has commissioned Systra Philippines Inc. to undertake the feasibility study for a mass transport system in Cebu.

Philtram Transportation Inc. has an existing memorandum of understanding with the city government to conduct study for its project.

In a letter to Villarete, Systra Philippines Inc. President Rhiza Castillo said their geotechnical contractor will avoid any damage to permanent or semi-permanent structures within the specified locations covered for the soil drilling activity.

Castillo said the soil drilling activity will allow them to classify soil properties where the monorail system will be established.

The updated monorail alignment will run from Talisay City through N. Bacalso, V. Rama Avenue, Fuente Osmeña, General Maxilom Avenue, port area, M.J. Cuenco Avenue, and Subangdaku-Wireless junction to Pacific Mall.

According to a press statement, proposed monorail project showed the highest ridership with more than 25,000 boarding north-bound and also about 25,000 alighting from the north at the planned Fuente and Mango stations.

Domingo So Peñaloza, Philtram chairman and CEO, said the feasibility study is “basically done” and that documents are being prepared for the submission of their unsolicited proposal to the Department of Transportation.

Even if the city allowed Philtram to do the soil grilling activity, Villarete said the city government does not support or endorse the project since there is no feasibility study yet that shows that the project is feasible.

“We have three proponents now. We don’t know which one of them is feasible. That remains to be seen. That is the reason why we are of course providing leeway to do their study,” he told The FREEMAN.

Villarete said there are three project proposals for Urban Rail Transport to connect the three cities and beyond -Philtram (backed by a Chinese group) is proposing a monorail system; Tranzen (backed by a Japanese group) is proposing a light rail transit; and Udenna Infrastructure Corp. (backed by Chinese and Singaporean groups) is also proposing a light rail transit.

While these are big projects, Villarete said Metro Cebu cannot accommodate all three projects at the same time because all of them cater the same ridership and the same corridor.

He said it is a matter of who will submit the first complete feasibility study and will be granted the original proponent status, which can still be challenged by any private sectors.

He said the city government will just wait as to whom will first finish the race, saying the city deserves the best mass transit project.

Marvette A. Demecillo/KBQ