MMDA: U-turn slots, adjustments would be implemented along Commonwealth

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) advised motorists that U-turn slots and other adjustments would be implemented along Commonwealth Avenue affected by the construction of the Metro Rail Transit 7.

Emil Llavor, MMDA Road Safety Unit head, said workers of the project contractor EEI Corporation have started occupying several lanes from the center island of Commonwealth near the Technohub area as construction works began.

One of the adjustments in the area is the transfer of U-turn slot near the Technohub area to Tandang Sora area.

“The existing location of the U-turn which is near the Technohubb area would be excavated for the underground tunnel,” Llavor said.

He said motorists and commuters would start to experience heavier traffic when the excavation reaches North Avenue and Philcoa area.

“We have required the removal of the delineator installed by Road Board through the Department of Public Works and Highways to widen the road,” said Llavor, noting the delineator serves as separators for passing public utility and private vehicles in the area.

Loading and unloading areas along Commonwealth Avenue would also be fixed.  EEI Corporation, the project contractor,  likewise committed to install their own CCTV cameras in the area as well as provide flagmen to help in traffic management.

Meanwhile the MMDA fined the private contractor for obstructing traffic along busy Commonwealth Avenue when it parked a large crane used in their construction.

Through a letter, Jojo Garcia, MMDA assistant general manager for planning, said they ordered the private contractor EEI Corporation to pay P25,000 fine for blocking two lanes of traffic with their large crane early this week near Technohub area.

“The public badly needs the railway but the contractor must follow what we have agreed guidelines. They should limit their construction space,” said Garcia.

The contractors are only allowed to occupy two lanes in each direction.

Since the construction began late last month, motorists passing along Commonwealth Avenue have complained of heavy traffic.

Garcia said the contractor should understand that motorists need to get to their destination and inconvenience brought by the construction of the railway should be minimized.

In 2016, an annual average daily traffic of 272,255 vehicles was recorded along Commonwealth Avenue.

MRT-7 is a 22-kilometer rail transit system with 14 stations that would connect North Avenue in Quezon City to San Jose Del Monte City in Bulacan.

The 14 stations would be along North Avenue, Quezon City Memorial Circle, University Avenue, Tandang Sora, Don Antonio, Batasan, Manggahan, Doña Carmen, Regalado, Mindanao Avenue, Quirino, Sacred Heart. Tala, and San Jose Del Monte.

The project is expected to be finished by fourth quarter of 2019.

Infra spending picks up

The national government’s disbursements for infrastructure and other capital outlays in July jumped  25 percent against  the previous year’s level, data from the Department of Budget and Management showed.

In its website, DBM said infrastructure spending for the month stood at P48.4 billion, P9.7 billion higher than the P38.7 billion spent a year ago.

The DBM attributed the growth in capital expenditures to the implementation of flood control, road improvement, and road widening projects, and the acquisition of naval and air defense assets under the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization program.

Also contributing to the increase in infrastructure expenditures are the purchase of equipment and other infrastructure outlays under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program and payment for transport infrastructure projects such as the right-of-way acquisition for the Southwest Intregrated Transport System (ITS) project and completed civil works for the LRT-2 East Extension project.

Year-to-date, infrastructure and other capital expenditures stood at P297.5 billion, an 11.1 percent increase from the previous year, owing to the implementation of road infrastructure programs, modernization of defense facilities and assets of the Department of National Defense and other capital outlay projects in other agencies.

Meanwhile maintenance and other operating expenses in July reached P38.3 billion, 41.1 percent more than the level in July 2016.

The DBM said the huge expansion in maintenance expenditures is attributed to the implementation of social services programs such as the assistance to victims of disasters and calamities, conditional cash transfers and supplemental feeding program; procurement of drugs, medicines and vaccines, and medical assistance programs; and the operating requirements of DepEd schools nationwide.

Maintenance spending for the month also includes the P1-billion payment of insurance premium to the Government Service Insurance System in connection with the disaster-risk insurance coverage of government facilities against natural calamities.

As of end-July, maintenance expenses grew 6.4 percent to P246.6 billion.

“It is worthy to note that the pace of maintenance expenditures is gradually accelerating as indicated by the 6.4 percent growth as of July this year,” the DBM said.

“This is a significant improvement from the 1.8 percent increase recorded in the first semester, which indicates that spending agencies are catching up on their implementation delays and bottlenecks encountered at the start of the year,” it added.

Total disbursement in July grew by 11 percent to P245.1 billion, while it posted a growth of 9.3 percent to P1.58 trillion for the seven-month period.

Meanwhile, the DBM said as of July 2017, the remaining program balance still available for release for the rest of the year amounted to P452.9 billion or 13.5 percent of the P3.35 trillion obligation program.

“The line agencies still have around five more months to expend these allotments which could further increase disbursement levels. The growth of disbursements in July this year, which is double the growth for the same month in 2016, is a positive indication that the government has gotten past the adjustment stage or transition period,” the DBM said.

“This gives us optimism that the growth of government spending will be sustained until the end of the year. This expectation is supported by the spending behavior of line agencies,” it added.

The DBM said based on historical trend, disbursements are usually higher in the fourth quarter as the implementation of government programs and projects is accelerated or completed before the year ends and ahead of the closing of books.

Metro Pacific’s toll unit aims to double revenues in 4 years

A tollway unit of Metro Pacific Investment Corp. expects to double revenues in four years, boosted by the completion of new expressway projects, a top executive said over the weekend.

“This year, we expect P1.46-billon revenues and we hope to be able to double that in four years. So by 2020, we hope to be able to do P3.4 billion,”  Metro Pacific Tollways South president and chief executive Luigi Bautista said.

Metro Pacific Tollways South handles the concession of all expressways in the south of Manila.

Bautista attributed the growth in revenues to the new and existing projects plus new road segments that would be opened in the coming years.

“And today, you will notice, traffic is really growing. We’re averaging about 140,000 transactions a day. When we took over in January 2013, the traffic number was about 90,000. And it continues to grow,” Bautista said.

Bautista also said MPCala Holdings Inc. was constructing the P35-billon Cavite Laguna Expressway, a four-lane, 47-kilometer closed-system toll expressway connecting Cavitex and South Luzon Expressway.

The expressway will start from Cavitex in Kawit, Cavite and end at the South Luzon Expressway-Mamplasan Interchange in Biñan City, Laguna.

Bautista also said the construction of the first phase of Cavitex C5 South Link that would will link C5 and Merville, Parañaque by way of a flyover was ongoing. The second phase, which would start in 2017 to link Merville and Cavitex, would cost P9.5 billion.

Cavitex C5 South Link will allow residents from Cavite, Las Piñas and parts of Parañaque to avoid Edsa and take a direct link to and from C5 to Cavitex.

Bautista said the new expressway, which was expected to be completed in 2019, would add 40,000 to 45,000 vehicle traffic per day, on top of the 130,000 vehicles currently using Cavitex.

C5 South Link will ultimately connect with R1 Expressway (Coastal Road) and provide fast, safe and convenient travel for motorists going to and from Parañaque, Las Piñas and Cavite and for Paranaque residents in Multinational, Moonwalk and Merville villages.

Bautista said the new expressway would not only decongest Parañaque villages, but would also provide easier travel from Taguig, Makati, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon City and other northern areas to Manila, Las Piñas and Cavite province.

It will also provide relief for vehicles using the congested EDSA and C5 Road arteries of the metropolis.

Tiger Tale: The history of the 2006 UST Growling Tigers Part 2

Looking at the UST Growling Tigers’ record in Season 68 and their lineup coming into Season 69, there was no way that team could win a championship or even make the Final Four.

A relatively young team with no experience combined with a new and unproven coach, there was little to no chance that UST was going to make a deep run.

And after they lost senior Jemal Vizcarra, who happened to be one of their leading scorers, for the season after an ACL tear in their very first game, no way the Tigers can do something worth remembering now.

Wrong.

In any case, the injury to Vizcarra brought the team closer, not that they needed any more inspiration during that point of the season, and it became one of the many “unexpected blessings” to the team that year.

Jojo Duncil was forced to step up to plate and Jervy Cruz needed to quickly assume a prime time role just as he was learning to play with the big boys after being elevated from UST’s Team B.

Looking at what the Growling Tigers went through that year all the way from the preseason to the last game of the eliminations, there was no way the team could win.

Fortunately they had none of all that and so we have the Tiger Tale: the history of the 2006 UST Growling Tigers, the most unlikely of champions.


Part 2 of 2.

WE’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE

[Tiger Tale: The history of the 2006 UST Growling Tigers Part 1]

After a roller-coaster regular season that saw them deal with a new coach, death, injuries and all sorts of drama, the 2006 UST Growling Tigers finally made some of their critics eat their words by qualifying for the Final Four as the third seed.

Standing in their way was the upstart UE Red Warriors squad, a young and talented team who on the very next season would sweep the UAAP all the way to the finals.

The Tigers split their season series with the Red Warriors, and that was enough reason to be confident even if their opponents had a twice-to-beat advantage.

Plus they were finally healthy.

Dylan Ababou, forward, 2009 UAAP MVP: Yun yung time na na-kumpleto kami talaga so sabi naming ‘guys magandang balita ito, first time natin ma-kumpleto baka maganda yung maging resulta.’

Jojo Duncil, shooting guard, 2006 Finals MVP: Noong time na yun, underdog kami eh pero ayun nga nag-umpisa yun nung second round na nag-start na kami manalo. One at a time lagi kami nananalo and nung nakarating na kami sa semis sabi namin nandito na tayo so kailangan seryoso na, mas lalo na natin pagbutihan.

Jervy Cruz, forward-center, elevated from Team B in 2006, 2007 UAAP MVP: Nandoon na yung pagkakataon tapos hindi natin alam kung kelan ulit mangyayari yun. So binigay na namin yung best namin.

Japs Cuan, starting point guard: One game at a time lang kami, sabi nga namin we’re not supposed to be here in the first place. Starting the second round dead-last kami but it happens for a reason eh, sabi nga namin bakit ngayon pa tayo gi-give up.

The Growling Tigers managed to push themselves to victory in the back-and-forth first game, 79-75, but it was no big deal as many have done that before. What was more important was how they can carry the momentum into the do-or-die contest with a finals slot hanging in the balance.

Luck would favor the Tigers early on as UE star Bonbon Custodio was suspended by the team for “disciplinary issues.”

UST went on a roll early on before Jojo Duncil gave a little finals preview by knocking down a clutch basket to give the team some much needed breathing room to preserve the win.

Ababou: Ayun sinasabi ni Allan [Evangelista] na guys ‘manalo naman tayo ng isang game para ma-extend niyo ako’ yun lang sinasabi niya. Ayun swerte nung game 1 ng Final Four tapos game 2 hindi pinalaro si Bonbon Custodio so kumbaga 18 points na kaagad yung minus sa kanila, so swerte din nung game na yun lalo na kasi nagmi-mintis sila ng crucial shots.

Cuan: Ang maganda kasi dun is we were always the underdogs so wala sa amin yung pressure, always the other team like UE, twice-to-beat sila so sila dapat manalo. But in the end kami yung nanalo kasi we just played UST basketball and credit goes to all my teammates kasi they responded to the challenge. Win or lose, we’ll always be brothers.

With a thrilling 82-81 victory to complete the Final Four upset, the Tigers booked their first finals since 1999.

A date with the mighty Ateneo Blue Eagles was on the horizon.


GAME 1: HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT

Once again, all odds were set against the Tigers as the Season 69 finals rolled around despite the fact that they split their season series against the Blue Eagles, handing Ateneo its first ever loss that year.

Both teams did not disappoint as the opening salvo of the title round was a classic, one that boiled down to the last two possessions.

Doug Kramer and the rest of the Blue Eagles robbed Evangelista of a signature finals moment after the Ateneo big man hit a shot at the buzzer for the win, 73-72.

In the previous scoring play, Evangelista buried the go-ahead fadeaway jumper over Kramer.

Cruz: Naiyak pa ako nun dahil ako yung bantay ni Kramer eh. Parang nag-switch kami ni Japs pero akin talaga si Kramer. Naiyak ako nun habang naliligo ako sinabi ko sa coaches na bakit nangyari yun kasi one second na lang eh, hindi mo na iisipin na pwede pa palang mangyari yun.

Cuan: Yung talo namin nay un, sobrang sakit but we took it, we had them eh. They played their best game and sa amin, nagkamali lang kami so kaya naming mag-bounce back.


GAME 2: NO PRESSURE FOR THE OVERACHIEVERS

The Tigers jumped on the Blue Eagles early in game 2 on their way to earning a pretty convincing 87-71 win.

With Dylan Ababou and Jojo Duncil leading the way, Pido Jarencio’s scrappy Tigers have pushed the favored Blue Eagles to a deciding game 3.

Ababou: Well nung pumasok kami sa finals nasa isip naming nag-overachieve na kami eh. So pagdating nung game 2, wala kaming pressure. Pag matalo okay lang. Nag-overachieve na tayo para dumating sa finals mula sa 2-4 nung first round. Mas pressure sa Ateneo kasi iki-clinch nila yung series eh.

Cruz: Sila Kramer, sila JC, talagang beterano na sa UAAP. Kami nun wala sigurong kilala samin nung time na yun so advantage din naming na kindi kami kilala. Naglaro lang kami, nag-enjoy.

Cuan: Ang maganda sa amin, no one believed na we were going to make the finals, no one ever thought of it beyond ourselves. Sayang naman yung team namin nay un na we’re good but inexperienced pero ang maganda, nanaig sa amin yung walang pressure. So if we beat them [Ateneo], we beat them. Tinalo nila kami nung game 1 by one point sabi namin yun na sila eh, hirap sila sa amin so just play our game, no pressure. Win or lose I think we gained the respect of the Thomasians, iba sumuporta ang Thomasians. Saludo ako sa UST.


GAME 3: PUSO. PRIDE. PALABAN.

The final showdown between the UST Growling Tigers and the Ateneo Blue Eagles in the UAAP Season 69 turned out to be a blockbuster.

Both teams exchanged haymakers like champions in a heavyweight bout. Ateneo took control in the first half before UST made it a game in the second.

However, in the fourth quarter, the Tigers found themselves down by five with a minute left to play without Jervy Cruz, who earlier drew his fifth and final foul, and Allan Evangelista.

The Tigers, thanks to Anthony Espiritu and Mark Canlas, managed to force overtime and in the extra session, it was the Jojo Duncil show.

Duncil: Sinabihan ako ni coach Pido, diba graduate na sina Allan Evangelista tsaka si Jervy Cruz, sabi ni coach ‘Jo ikaw na bahala wala na yung dalawa’ so syempre sakin naman, may tiwala si coach nung time nay un talagang habang naglalaro iniisip ko na wala na, no choice na kasi yung ibang key player naming wala na. Kailangan ko na mag-step up. Di ko rin alam nangyayari kasi lahat nung mga tira natin pumasok, blessing talaga ni God.

Ababou: Kinakabahan ako personally kasi first time ko maglalaro sa isang game na kumbaga last na nung season, tapos final pa yun, lahat nanonood. Sobrang excited ako pero sobrang credit kay coach Pido, kasi ang ganda talaga nung balasa niya, minotivate niya kami ng husto. Tapos yung Divine Intervention din nung teammate naming na si Apil, kasi may isang time [during game 2] nasa free throw si Ford Arao biglang may butterfly na dumaan, paano makakapasok yung butterfly sa Araneta? May tulong din galing sa Taas tapos sobrang nag-step up teammates ko lalo na si Jojo Duncil, yun yung nagpa-champion sa amin eh. Kung wala siguro si Jojo doon, di kami champion. Ganun kasimple.

Cruz: Bihira ako ma-foul out hindi ko alam kung bakit game 3 na-foul out ako. Ang sama ng loob ko na nasa bench lang ako nanonood tapos hindi ako makatulong sa team. Maganda naman si Jojo nag-step up so siya yung gumawa ng paraan para manalo kami kasi gusto din niya manalo.

Cuan: I had this professor na sabi ‘wala pala kayo eh’ so ako parang sir di ah, tapos nakipagpustahan siya sakin na sige manalo kayo uno ka pag natalo kayo singko ka. Ganun ako katiwala sa team ko, from down 0-1 kami ah, ganun ako katiwala syempre ayoko minamaliit yung team ko dib a walang isip-isip tinaya ko yung grade ko.

Duncil scored 18 points, eight in overtime, to lead the Growling Tigers to a dramatic 76-74 win effectively ending UST’s ten-year drought for the UAAP title.

The Tigers finally did what nobody else thought they could do and in effect, captured the hearts of not only Thomasians but many other basketball fans.


THE AFTERMATH

Lost in the celebration was the fact that the 2006 championship win paid huge dividends to the members of the squad in the future.

Both Dylan Ababou and Jervy Cruz would go on to win the MVP award in separate years before making the PBA.

Ababou also became part of the original Gilas Pilipinas national team.

Jojo Duncil would also make the PBA and later win a championship for Petron.

Japs Cuan never played in the PBA but he has been part of UST’s basketball coaching staff for many years now while head coach Pido Jarencio would make the finals two more times before realizing his dream of coaching in the PBA as well.

Overall, the support for the Growling Tigers has never really wavered thanks to the 2006 win even if the team has yet to win another title since.

Ababou: Naalala ko nun sabi ni coach Pido sakin kapag nag-champion kayo lahat kayo magpi-PBA. Nung sinabi niya yun lalo kaming na-motivate. Nagkatotoo naman yung sinabi ni coach, hindi naman sure ticket pero malaki yung chance mo na makapag-PBA. Feeling ko kung hindi kami nag-champion nung 2006 hindi ako maco-consider sa Gilas, hindi tataas yung morale, yung confidence ko na kaya ko mag PBA. Sobrang turning point sa career ko yung 2006, malaki ang utang na loob ko.

In the end, what the members of the 2006 team finds special is the fact that they helped restore the glory in UST with the whole Puso. Pride. Palaban slogan of course, bridging the gap from the dominant 1990s dynasty to the Comeback Cats this year.

Cuan: Siguro yung legacy na iniwan naming, alam mo yung feeling na you were counted out but refused to give up? Yun yun maganda sa batch namin eh, everyone counted us out but we kept fighting for this crowd na sobrang, hands down, the best crowd. It’s always been puso, pride, palaban. It’s all about heart kasi yung four-peat champion team natin, they were really a strong team, sobrang lakas. Pero yung team namin, we’re all starting lang eh, we are not that talented but we played our hearts out for our school. Live and die growling, that 2006 team lived and died growling. I’m proud of that.

Cruz: Sobrang tagal na after ten years bago kami nag-champion. Kami naman wala kami ine-expect nun, basta maglaro lang kami. Magandang factor yun kasi naibalik namin yung panalo sa UST. Naging identity naming is palaban talaga, yung tinuro samin ni coach Pido nun unang-una dapat lumaban, wag matakot kasi once na natakot kayo sa court yun na, wala ng mangyayari.

Duncil: Naging palaban kami kahit na pangit [yung start], naging palaban kami talaga tsaka deserving naman kami na manalo kahit underdogs kami. Pinakita namin na kaya namin, kinaya namin.

Ababou: Ang slogan ni coach Pido nun eh puso, pride, palaban, yun yung tingin ko na character naming, yun yung identity namin. Yung team may puso, yung team may pride, UST pride at yung team talagang palaban kasi pinangunahan ni coach Pido. Sobrang lahat ng games naming dinedicate namin kay Lord, Lord kayo na bahala sa game, manalo kami matalo kami Kayo na po bahala. Sabay-sabay kami pupunta ng chapel every game, bago every practice. Yun talaga nakita ko na identity namin, puso, pride, palaban tsaka syempre trust in the Lord.

As defending champions and hosts, the Growling Tigers lost to the Blue Eagles in round 1 of the stepladder semifinals in Season 70, 64-69. La Salle won the championship that year.

Under Pido Jarencio, the Tigers would make back-to-back finals in Seasons 75 and 76, losing to Ateneo and La Salle respectively.

AC Infra gears up for expressway PPP

AC Infrastructure Holdings Corporation, a subsidiary of conglomerate Ayala Corporation, is looking to bid for in an expressway project in northern Luzon that the government may finally offer under its private-public partnership (PPP) program.

In an interview, AC Infra President Rene Almendras said the company has been informed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) that it is preparing for the bidding of the project.

“The DPWH said they are tendering a project under the PPP. The DPWH said they have an expressway project under the PPP. So they told me to get ready. More or less they said it’s an expressway up north,” said Almendras.

Meanwhile, AC Infra is also waiting for the Department of Transportation to give the green light for the bidding on the extension of the LRT 2 track all the way to the Manila port area.

So far, AC Infra’s portfolio of projects is composed of the 4-kilometer, four lane, MCX tollway in Muntinlupa; the 35-year concession to operate the LRT 1 that runs between Roosevelt in Quezon City and Baclaran in Parañaque; and the contactless payment system used in Metro Manila’s light rail transport system – LRT 1, LRT 2, and MRT 3.

AC Infra is also preparing for a new unsolicited project proposal to be made within the year as the company sees opportunity to provide “service, convenience for people.”

“Our mandate is to solve problems. So when we see a problem, we will try to solve it,” said Almendras as he noted the company already has a number of unsolicited proposals with the government.

Almendras said AC Infra is also looking at soft-infrastructure opportunities in the country.

Socio-economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said recently that the Duterte administration has already approved a total of 28 projects worth P658 billion, since it assumed office in July last year.

“These include 22 new projects and 6 projects originally approved by the previous administration with changes,” he said.

“The remaining 6 projects were originally approved under the previous administration but were resubmitted for NEDA Board confirmation due to project changes. The total additional amount required from previously approved projects with change in project cost amounts to P1.36 billion,” Pernia added.

Subway

At last, a subway for us… the commuter line, not the sandwich. NEDA has finally approved the first phase of the subway project for Metro Manila. Compared with the Roxas-Abaya era at the transport department, at least Art Tugade is able to get faster approval of big projects by NEDA.

I think Sec. Tugade and the Duterte NEDA should be commended for not stretching the decision process for vital transport projects. It took them less time to decide on the country’s most expensive mass transit system than it took the Roxas-Abaya DOTC to decide on the four-kilometer LRT2 extension.

I also like it that the approved project added a spur line to NAIA, a logical move suggested by Sec. Tugade. In fact, the original alignment should have led to NAIA rather than the old FTI area that is now being developed by a leading property conglomerate.


Indeed, I was wondering about the logic of the original alignment that starts in the Trinoma area to EDSA then to C-5, passing through Market Market/BGC and to the FTI area, now called Arca South. Connect the dots to guess who the developer of all these properties is. Looks like one of their former executives, who briefly served as transport undersecretary, did his job well.

Given the pretty large outlay for the subway project, government is expected to make sure its alignment will serve the most number of people. This ambitious project will now cost P355.6 billion (roughly $7 billion), up from the original cost assumption of P227 billion (roughly $4.4 billion).

The project will be funded by Japan at an interest rate of 0.10 percent per year, payable in 40 years, with a grace period of 12 years. Japan must truly love us more than China whose ODA funding for other transport projects carries an interest rate of at least three percent.

Because we still have to pay back the loan, government must make sure we get maximum benefit. This is why the original alignment is questionable. It only yields a rather low projected ridership of 370,000 a day compared to over a million in an EDSA alignment. As such, it will be very difficult to have a fare that, given political realities, will be sufficient to operate and maintain it.

Our country’s first subway line must serve the densest traffic corridor which is the stretch of EDSA from North Avenue to Taft/Baclaran. This corridor can support mass transit with a capacity up to 1.2 million because it goes through several high-density business and residential districts.

Terminating the subway line in NAIA will also provide a public transport alternative to airline passengers. LTFRB has failed to put adequate public transport in our gateway airport. This failure leaves airline passengers at the tender mercies of the criminal transport syndicates working in cahoots with some corrupt airport officials.

In any case, the old FTI area will already be served by the Taguig central bus terminal and by the PNR south commuter train line which the Edsa subway line can intersect to enable passengers to transfer lines. Maybe costs can be saved if the plan for a C5 alignment to terminate the subway line in FTI is totally scrapped in favor of an EDSA alignment that terminates at NAIA.

I really find it difficult to understand why the subway alignment as originally proposed will not serve the heavily populated Ortigas-Greenhills-ShawCrossing-Boni area and instead move east before Ortigas towards C-5. I am personally benefited by the C5 alignment, but it is not the best for this project.

There will be some right of way issues in the C5 alignment and that could delay completion of the project. No such problem is expected for an EDSA alignment as it will run under the wide public thoroughfare without encroaching on private subterranean rights.

With the subway and the rehabilitated MRT3 working together, there will be little excuse to use private transport. That will make it possible to impose tolls similar to the congestion tolls imposed in cities like Singapore and London.

Most important, the potential passenger load of a subway running under EDSA is easily double that of the C5 alignment. That alone, will vastly improve the viability of the project and make lower fares and/or lower subsidies possible.

And since it is a totally government project, we can implement lessons learned from the MRT3 contract regarding the utilization of commercial property income to help reduce subsidy required from government.

In MRT3, the original partners dictated where the stations will be, and mostly near their malls. They also had monopoly on advertising revenues from billboards within the system. We can do better than that by making these decisions in the public interest, not the commercial interest of a few conglomerates.

Some friends in the business community have also suggested that maybe government should totally use the Japan loan to build the tunnels not just for this first subway but for a few more lines. We also need, for example, an East-West line to augment the service now provided by LRT2.

If this strategy is accepted, the government can then implement a hybrid PPP that will let the private sector fund and build-operate everything else needed from the rails to the procurement and maintenance of trains and running the system daily.  This approach will enable us to have two or more subway systems instead of just one.

But what impressed me at this stage is the determination of the administration to get this big project started. I do not believe they can complete the project before the end of the President’s term. Its completion will likely be delayed by a few years, beyond the term of the administration, but at least they got it started.

To me, the fact that they did not just study the project to death is progress enough. Mar Roxas could have done this when he was DOTC secretary, but he didn’t. He didn’t have enough guts, imagination, nor empathy for the millions of commuters burdened by inadequate mass transport and the traffic jams.

Secretary Art Tugade, NEDA Secretary Ernie Pernia, Finance Sec. Sonny Dominguez and Budget Secretary Ben Diokno all deserve our congratulations for taking this first step. That first step is always the most difficult.

Let us hope they will be as decisive with other transport infra projects still waiting to be done. We need officials who can get sh-t done!

Boo Chanco’s e-mail address is bchanco@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @boochanco.