Target initial operation of new Davao bus system next year achievable: DoTr-11

DAVAO CITY — Officials of the Department of Transportation (DoTr) Davao Region 11 said that the original approved target of Davao City High Priority Bus System’s (HPBS) initial operation in 2026 is still achievable despite the delay.

DoTr Supervising Administrative Officer Nestor Kilian Tabada expressed optimism that this will happen as a general consultant will be assisting them to hit their timelines.

“We have a consultant that’s coming on board. A general consultant coming on board and will be awarded the contract, and this general consultant will help us manage this delay so that while we have estimated timelines, we have estimates as we want to launch this in 2026,” Mr. Tabada said during the session of the 20th City Council at the Sangguniang Panlungsod.

HPBS is one of the flagship projects of the Build, Build, Build program of the Duterte administration, which is being implemented by DoTr and the city government of Davao.

The initial implementation of HPBS was originally eyed in 2026 following the approval of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) in 2019. However, its implementation is experiencing delay for eight months.

“The project has experienced delay and that is why we are catching up with the implementation. When the project was approved by NEDA we are experiencing some eight months delay from the original date of approval,” Mr. Tabada said.

Mr. Tabada is hopeful that with the general consultant coming on board DoTr can pull these timelines this year.

“So, for those components that we can implement earlier hopefully the general consultant can help us manage back,” he said.

Richard Villanueva, Project Evaluation Officer of DoTr Davao Region, assured that despite the delay, the project will happen.

“The eight months delay is unavoidable in a project like this. We will acquire a lot of land for terminals, depots, and bus stops that are more than 1,000. It’s inevitable that we’ll have delays like that, but we’re officially there and the funds are there, it’s just a matter of processing the details,” Mr. Villanueva said in an interview.

HPBS includes the development of public transport terminals in Toril, for those coming from Kidapawan, Cotabato, General Santos; in Calinan, for those passengers coming from Cagayan de Oro City; and Bunawan, for those coming from Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental; depots; and a driving school as key supporting facilities of the modern service; 1,119 bus stops; and more than 1,000 new bus fleets.

Mr. Villanueva explained that among the factors of the delay is the re-study they conducted following the NEDA approval.

“When we re-studied it, we saw that there is something that needs to be added because there are components there that are lacking, like the size of the terminal, the entitlement package for the drivers that they will receive. So, we have to re-apply and get another approval from NEDA,” he said.

The project has a funding of P72 billion that will come from three sources: loan proceeds from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the national government, and the city government of Davao.

In July 2023, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. representing the national government, and ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa formally signed the budget from the ADB amounting to USD 1.71 billion signaling the start of the implementation of the Davao Bus Project.

Mr. Villanueva said it is the target of DoTr to fully pay the landowners affected by the Right-Of-Way (ROW) acquisition this year.

“When you acquire land, the title to the landowners and the arrangement for each family must also be clean. Some documents must also be in order,” he said.

HPBS would replace the existing jeepney network with a four-tier: MetroDavao, DavaoInter, DavaoFeeder, and DavaoLocal; 29-route network operating with larger buses including 18m articulated and 12m bus units, which will significantly reduce the number of public transport vehicles on the roadways. Small 10m buses will also be introduced. — Maya M. Padillo