How can the government really fix the EDSA Carousel? More stations and buses? Or perhaps employ the help of foreign governments? Well, the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) has another idea: privatize it.
According to a report by the Philippine Daily Inquirer, MAP has now sent a proposal to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) to privatize the EDSA Carousel to help address the busway’s woes. The recommendation stated that the infrastructure and improvements of the carousel network would be shouldered by the government, but the network as a whole would be operated and maintained by private concessionaires.
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
Lane splitting vs. lane filtering: Why we need to differentiate the two
Is the Honda ADV 160 on its way to PH?
“MAP has offered to work with the DOTr and other private sector stakeholders in preparing the terms of reference for the bidding and award of the concessions to ensure a level playing field for all,” read MAP’s statement.
The recommendation also included building more stations and expediting the construction of footbridges to decongest choke points. The proposal also seeks to improve bus-to-train connectivity and provide exchange stations for trunk-to-feeder line transfers.
“The upgrade will complete the EDSA busway—a work in progress—scale up its capacity and raise it to the level of global standards to optimize the system to achieve its full potential as a cost-effective, efficient, high-capacity urban mass public transport system commensurate to the high commuter density of EDSA,” MAP said.
The National Center for Commuter Safety and Protection, for its part, raised concerns about how privatization would affect bus fares and which companies will be awarded contracts, as the busway’s current state is supposedly “challenging for commuters.”
“Persons with disabilities, senior citizens do not have easy access to it. They find difficulties in climbing up the footbridges,” group chair Elvira Medina told Inquirer. “We are obliged to walk in front of the buses since the footbridge exits are on the left and the doors of the buses are on the right. This is against the international advisory never to cross in front of a vehicle [because of] the danger of not being seen by oncoming vehicles.”
What say you, commuters? Will privatization help solve the EDSA Carousel’s problems?
