BCDA eyes bus rapid transit system for Tarlac, Pampanga

By 2027, a bus rapid transit (BRT) spanning 50 kilometers to 60 km may finally connect passengers in Pampanga and Tarlac and service routes to Clark International Airport as the government seeks to provide mass transport in the emerging business district.

Joshua Bingcang, Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) president and CEO, said the planned Clark Integrated Public Transport System would traverse New Clark City in Tarlac and Clark airport and Clark freeport zone in Pampanga.

The bidding for the project, estimated to cost P3 billion to P5 billion, is targeted to be conducted by the last quarter of this year or the first quarter of 2025. The government agency intends to implement the project with a private sector partner as the operator of the mass transport system.

Once awarded, Bingcang said construction would take two years.

According to the official of the government-owned and -controlled corporation, the World Bank is currently evaluating the viability of the transport project and ironing out its terms of reference. The study is slated to be out by October.

“It is a mass transport. It is what we want. Less pollution, less cars,” he told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Tarlac last week. Bingcang said they were also planning to deploy electric vehicles and Euro-5 compliant buses along the routes as a way to decrease carbon emissions. The BCDA official said the BRT project would cover integration of commercial areas for retail outlets and restaurants with bus stations to make the plan financially viable.

“Most of the transport operations do not earn money from passenger fees but on the real estate,” he said. “We’ll partner with real estate to make it viable.”

The project would also incorporate smart technologies like cashless payment schemes. “You will see in the station when the next bus will arrive so that you can properly plan your travel,” he added.

A mass transport project in New Clark City and neighboring towns could benefit around 4 million residents. The 9,450-hectare mixed-use hub in the Clark Special Economic Zone is currently undergoing developments as it targets to house 1.2 million residents.

In October last year, BCDA inked a memorandum of agreement with Zenmov Inc. and MC Metro Transport Operation to conduct a demonstration and study of an energy-efficient and smart technology-backed public transportation system inside the Clark ecozone. INQ