Country’s first landport ready to roll
The daily commute from Cavite and Batangas to Metro Manila is expected to improve as the country’s first landport, done through a collaboration of the public and private sectors, opens on Nov. 5.
The Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) along Coastal Road will deliver a new experience with passenger-friendly systems,
multi-modal connections and a wide array of commercial options in a terminal with a daily capacity of 200,000 passengers.
As a flagship project of the current administration’s Build Build Build infrastructure program, the terminal is set to be inaugurated by no less than President Duterte.
The PITX is the first integrated and multi-modal terminal in the southwestern part of Metro Manila, serving as a transfer point between provincial buses from Cavite, Batangas and in-city modes of transportation.
It will also provide interconnectivity between different transport modes and services that will help ensure efficient and seamless travel for the riding public.
Once operational, the PITX is expected to reduce the number of provincial buses plying Metro Manila, specifically along Taft Avenue and EDSA in Pasay City.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) assistant secretary Mark de Leon said the number one benefit of the terminal is convenience as passengers used to wait along the streets of Baclaran, Parañaque City and Lawton in Manila to get a ride.
“When you catch a ride going to Cavite, going to Nasugbu, you stay there without knowing what time the bus will arrive, or if ever a bus will arrive and if it does, there is no guarantee that a seat is available. This will bring convenience because you will now know what time will the bus arrive, and you can even pick where you will sit,” De Leon said.
“Number two is the decongestion of Metro Manila. Since all of the provincial buses going to Cavite and Batangas will now have this as a stop, their terminals along Pasay, along Lawton, along Baclaran will be removed and closed. So it’s one of the solutions, not the ultimate solution, to address traffic. Again, it will help, but it is not the ultimate solution,” De Leon added.
Automated boarding pass scanners will ensure that passengers can board buses only during their chosen trip schedules.
A landport like no other
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the PITX is not just an ordinary terminal but a landmark transportation hub set to uplift the overall experience of the riding public with its design at par with world-class standards.
Tugade said its airport-type facility and service features earned it the distinction of a world-class landport.
For Tugade, the PITX is a testament of how good a collaboration between the public and private sectors could turn out.
The PITX is one of the flagship projects of the government to ease traffic congestion in inner Metro Manila. Its 35-year build-transfer-operate concession was awarded to engineering and infrastructure conglomerate Megawide in 2015.