DOTC, MWM seal contract for P3.27-B transport hub

THE DEPARTMENT of Transportation and Communications on Friday signed the contract for the P3.27-billion southern Metro Manila transportation hub project with MWM Terminals, led by Filipino builder Megawide Construction Corp. and Henry Sy’s Walter Mart group.

This is the Aquino administration’s ninth public-private partnership (PPP) deal to be awarded to date.

The signing paves the way for construction of the project, formally known as the Integrated Transport System (ITS) Southwest Terminal, which will begin in December this year.

The project will be completed by June 2017, Transportation department spokesperson Michael Sagcal said Friday.

The contract signing had been delayed due to land titling issues, which were only cleared up in recent weeks.

The government’s ITS project entails the creation of intermodal hubs where passengers on provincial buses may disembark before transferring to other in-city modes of transport, such as elevated railways, city buses and UV Express vans.

The move is supposed to ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila.

The ITS-Southwest project will be located near the Manila-Cavite Expressway.

“With the Southwest Terminal, we are able to facilitate the faster and more efficient flow of traffic carrying people and goods to and from Metro Manila. It will benefit thousands of commuters daily. Our infrastructure is finally catching up to our growing economy,” said Louie Ferrer, representative of MWM Terminals and Megawide corporate information officer.

Ferrer noted that the company studied the intermodal hubs abroad, particularly in Melbourne, Australia.

“We were inspired by the advancements they have made in terms of facility and operation. We are hopeful that we can apply the same forward-thinking processes in our country,” he said.

The terminal will accommodate provincial and metro buses, as well as other public utility vehicles. The mixed-use development will also feature a mall and office spaces, according to MWM Terminals.

Megawide bagged four other PPP projects, including the P17.5-billion Mactan Cebu International Airport expansion and operations deal.

MWM Terminals emerged as the winner of the bidding for the transport hub project in January this year after beating sole rival Filinvest Land. The contract will allow MWM Terminals to operate the ITS-Southwest Terminal for 35 years.

During the bidding, MWM Terminals proposed that the government pay it an annual fee of P100 million, against Filinvest Land’s P650-million offer for the 35-year concession period.

The DOTC is planning two other ITS projects for Metro Manila.

It already rolled out the P4 billion ITS-South project, which will be located near the Food Terminal Inc. compound in Taguig. For this project, Ayala Land Inc., Filinvest Land Inc., Datem Inc. and MWM Terminals have already hurdled the qualification process.

It is also planning to launch another ITS project in the northern part of Metro Manila. This will likely be located at the Veterans Memorial Hospital and Golf Course, the DOTC announced.