Courtesy: ADB
THE private sector’s support will play a pivotal role in speeding up completion of vital transport infrastructure projects even as the Department of Transportation (DOTr) continues to drum up support to bankroll such projects.
Speaking before the Stratbase ADR Institute Pilipinas Conference on Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista explained that due to the transport agency’s limited fiscal space, the DOTr has “resorted to seeking private sector support.”
“We need the cooperation of various stakeholders including foreign and local business groups who have expressed keen interest in our highly investible transport projects.,” Secretary Bautista said.
With a myriad of transport projects, the DOTr is directing multi-sectoral projects toward providing better travel experience for commuters, according to the transport chief.
“Our transport projects highlight the efforts of our government in pushing the infrastructure agenda of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to expand its pipeline of flagship projects that will transform the transport landscape, while improving mobility and connectivity,” he said.
Secretary Bautista cited several big-ticket transportation, which he said will “shake the status quo” in the transport sector.
Among the DOTr’s projects include the privatization kd the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), New Manila International Airport in Bulacan (NMIA), and the modernization of several airports such as the Bukidnon, Catbalogan, Dumagete, Tacloban, Kalibo, Caticlan, Laguindingan, Siargao, Zamboanga, Masbate, and Cotabato airports.
The transport agency is also poised to improve mobility and connectivity through railways with the ongoing construction of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR), Metro Manila Subway, MRT-7.
Road transport is also given priority with the modernization of public utility vehicles (PUVs), EDSA Busway, while prioritizing active mobility with the establishment of bicycle lanes throughout the country and the EDSA Greenways Project.
