BCDA, Japan’s Nedo to collaborate on high-tech Clark transport system

The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) on Wednesday said it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (Nedo) for a three-year demonstration project on smart mobility solutions to be implemented in New Clark City.

The agreement was signed by BCDA president and CEO Aileen Zosa and Nedo executive director Shuji Yumitori on Feb. 10, during the recently concluded five-day visit of President Marcos in Japan.

“In keeping with our goal for the New Clark City to become a green, sustainable and inclusive city, we have partnered with Japan’s Nedo and Zenmov to help BCDA in developing advanced and innovative solutions to improve transportation services and connectivity in this region,” Zosa said in a statement.

“We can definitely learn a lot from this sharing of technologies and expertise that our Japanese partners have relating to the advancement of their transportation sector,” she added.

The BCDA said that the demonstration project would be executed by a group nominated by Japan’s state-owned firm, with that group led by Zenmov Inc., a Japan-based information technology (IT) solutions provider specializing in the transportation sector.

The project will measure and verify the effectiveness of a transport service system, dubbed as “Primary Rapid Transit (PRT),” which will operate via a cloud-based technology platform, according to the BCDA.

Under this demonstration project, the public transportation system -touted as energy-efficient and a convenient “last mile” service- will run using Zenmoy’s Smart Mobility Operation Cloud. Zenmov’s cloud-based fleet management system is expected to maximize operational availability while keeping the number of vehicles at a minimum by managing a lean dispatching system based on travel demand data.

This system is complemented by more energy-efficient, low-carbon and innovative vehicles such as electric vehicles and electric bikes, as well as smart poles and drones for real-time data collection and dissemination.

Through this project, Zosa said the BCDA could also develop solutions to better optimize energy use, minimize pollution and lower carbon footprint, and manage congestion and other traffic-related issues.