The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said it plans to bid out the EDSA Busway Project next year.
“Within the next few months, we will finalize the feasibility study for EDSA Busway. We will submit it to NEDA [National Economic and Development Authority],” said DOTr Undersecretary for planning and project development Timothy John Batan.
“We’ll get approvals, and then we’ll eventually bid it out [next year],” he said.
The NCR EDSA Busway Project involves the financing, design and construction of enhanced bus stations, operations control centers and parking depots and the purchase, operations and maintenance of a high-capacity busway plying through EDSA and other major and feeder roads.
It is expected to enhance the existing EDSA Carousel to address the high demand for transportation services along the median of EDSA and feeder roads by increasing capacity and service reliability.
The DOTr and the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center on March 8, 2024 launched a market sounding activity to engage potential private sector partners in the crucial transport infrastructure project.
It sought to provide an overview of the proposed PPP project, gather initial feedback and valuable insights from private sector participants and identify potential issues or concerns affecting the project viability.
The potential scope of responsibility of the private sector partner could encompass financing, design, construction, operations and maintenance of upgraded bus stations and facilities, procurement of bus fleet, operations and maintenance of busway systems, the agency said.
It said about 60 private sector participants and five government agencies attended the market sounding activity.
The PPP Center and the DOTr on April 5, 2023 signed a technical assistance agreement for the provision of project preparation and transaction advisory services, funded through the Project Development and Monitoring Facility managed by the PPP Center.
The feasibility study of the project is targeted to be finished by midyear.