Bus Lines in The Philippines

[mysaong03]

^ speaking of those buses & transpo issues, india has been using them for so long alrdy. & construction of their first metro is now underway, vietnam is also finalizing their plans & they set to build their own subway in hochiminh sooner.

[thomasian]

Speaking of Natural Gas, can Natural Gas be used as a substitute for LPGs?
I mean, is there such thing as "Liquified Natural Gas" that can be used for cooking just like the LPGs?

[pau_p1]

hhaaaayyyyl..... I hope that they do replace our worn out, highly polluting buses.... I hope that our government has the political will to do so.... because taking them to rest would hurt the bus sector because it will be costly for them to buy new buses.....

I wish that the transportation control be returned to the government just like the time when we still have the Love Bus around.... unlike now na kanya kanya sa buses.. di organized.... buses have become too commercialized....

[ewh1]

I happened to Find this proposal that i guess all of us missed since its dated March 6

New Metro bus system eyed
CHITO CHAVEZ, Manila Bulletin (06 Mar 2005)

MANILA, PHILIPPINES: The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority is now studying a new bus system that would regulate the operation of buses in Metro Manila’s main thoroughfares.

MMDA Vice Chairman Cesar Lacuna said they are now looking into the possibility of implementing the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), a scheme being practiced in other countries such as China, Japan and Colombia.

The project, which is being pushed by the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities (CAIAC), is also being endorsed by Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Feliza Gozun.

"BRT could provide a win-win solution to mass transit problem in Metro Manila,’’ Lacuna said.

Under the proposal, a bus fleet to be put up by a consortium would operate its vehicles along the major roads to be approved by the MMDA, Land Transportation Office, Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board.

Lacuna explained that the proponents seek "exclusive’’ BRT routes along the inner lanes of the major thoroughfares, while loading bays will be located on the center-island to serve the commuters.

"Since all buses are left-hand drive and their doors are located on the right side, buses on the BRT route will traverse their designated lanes on a counter-flow basis,’’ Lacuna said.

Proponents will have to construct pedestrian overpasses to provide access to the loading bays at the center-island.

Proponents said the system is cheaper compared to other modes of mass transport like the Metro Rail Transit and Light Rail Transit, and could work even without building additional road lanes, which is expensive for the government.

MMDA General Manager Robert Nacianceno said the MMDA has not yet given its approval to the project, saying further study is still needed.

[stephencua]

thats a great find ewh1!!!

i really hope that the system would push thru... there's nothing but anarchy in the current system..

[pau_p1]

hmmmm...... I'm thinking of how it would look like along EDSA..... hmmmm...... a mob in the center island..... with the long line of buses..... hmmm.... welll as long as that inner lane is properly separated from private vehicles... it may work...

I hope that each bus would be numbered and would take different routes and not all of them plying EDSA all the way through...

[ryanr]

NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! Jakarta currently has that system and i dont think it will work well in Metro Manila! A BRT will only close off one lane of traffic causing more traffic mayhem! I'm definitely opposed to this proposal. The construction of MRTs is MUCH MUCH MUCH better....they will really regret "saving" by opting to use a BRT over MRT.

What i would rather like to see is the change in the salaries of bus drivers. The reason why bus drivers stop in the middle of the road to get passengers is because their salaries is based on how many passengers they can get. This is their incentive from their operators. A better system would be a fixed monthly or weekly salary so that they (the bus drivers) do not need to compete to gather passengers in the middle of the road. They will be more diciplined and stay to the right of the yellow line and stop at designated bus stops.

[olineil]

Originally Posted by GreyX

NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! Jakarta currently has that system and i dont think it will work well in Metro Manila! A BRT will only close off one lane of traffic causing more traffic mayhem! I'm definitely opposed to this proposal. The construction of MRTs is MUCH MUCH MUCH better....they will really regret "saving" by opting to use a BRT over MRT.

What i would rather like to see is the change in the salaries of bus drivers. The reason why bus drivers stop in the middle of the road to get passengers is because their salaries is based on how many passengers they can get. This is their incentive from their operators. A better system would be a fixed monthly or weekly salary so that they (the bus drivers) do not need to compete to gather passengers in the middle of the road. They will be more diciplined and stay to the right of the yellow line and stop at designated bus stops.

Amen to that!!!! In that matter im reposting this....

Replacing our old buses is a very good news...
But we are missing the point, that our government doesnt enact a law to control the number of operators we are still gonna end-up congesting the place. Most operators right now in MM are I could say small time...I say this beacuse all of them just buys all those converted 2nd-Hand Buses from Japan and just barely having enough earnigs to properly maintain their buses. If the government controls the licensing of operators, each operator will have a sizable area to operate, enough for them to have proper income, then chances are they are gonna make their bus drivers salary based instead of Boundary based income. As a result the bus drivers wont be acting like maniacs on the streets coz they dont have to fight off competition on the streets just to eat for the day. (Singapore system is this way, thats why u will see bus drivers here are very much behaved. But dont get me wrong they do have a time limit to reach the Bus interchange point where they need to terminate and return to the original bus interchange where it came from, this way the drivers cannot abuse the system that they will just sit it out somewhere and have salary for the month.)

[ewh1]

Now that i think of it.. Isn't EDSA basically a BRT route? it has "exclusive" bus lanes.. and now we hear that they are making Bus Stations on it and deviding the lanes with Metal Barriers.

[ryanr]

Exactly!!! @ olineil's post

I still believe EDSA and major roads have enough space for private cars and busses to operate without major traffic bottlenecks. It is really because of the buses that stop in the middle of EDSA that causes traffic congestion. The pink MMDA fences dont work, and many people who pass through EDSA can obviously see that they dont work! It is really how bus operators work that will change things.
And yes, the bus drivers should have a proper contract that motivates them to actually work and pick up passengers with a monthly salary. MMDA and the bus operators need to solve this problem by looking at the roots of the issue, not placing stupid physical barriers which bus drivers can still "cheat". Does MMDA really think bus drivers are stupid??

So with clean buring natural gas buses that stop and operate to the right side of the yellow line in a single file matter, traffic flow in EDSA would be sooo much smoother. It will also be a better sight because there is less pollution and the buses will be operating in an organised, single file matter. There will also be less accidents because the bus drivers dont need to drive insanely to get to the next crossing to drop and pick up passengers.

[pau_p1]

yeah.. a regular pay for drivers would discipline these drivers... there are some bus contractors that does this and their service is very good.... and yes... the LTO should regulate the number of vehicles on the roads (all not only PUVs)

[bustero]

After riding the nice buses and trams in australia, nakaka depress ang buses natin dito. Anyway at the very least I hope they do not polute and force them to use lpg if they can't use cng.

[davidwebb]

Lotilla hails NDC involvement in ethanol program
By Donnabelle L. Gatdula
The Philippine Star 04/26/2005

Energy Secretary Raphael P.M. Lotilla has lauded the 40 percent equity investment in the proposed fuel ethanol project in San Carlos, Negros Occidental by the state-owned National Development Co. (NDC), in joint venture with Bronzeoak Philippines.

The joint venture company, San Carlos Bio-Energy Inc. (SCBI), will develop and operate an integrated facility for ethanol production in San Carlos City in Negros. Bronzeoak will control the remaining 60 percent of the joint venture.

Lotilla said SCBI and the fuel ethanol project will support the government’s National Fuel Ethanol Program, which aims to develop and utilize bioethanol fuels.

"Promotion and widespread utilization of ethanol and other biofuels as alternative transport fuel would certainly help the transport sector mitigate the impact of rising oil prices," Lotilla said.

Aside from developing alternative fuels, the SCBI ethanol project will enhance the viability of the local sugar industry and help in alleviating the plight of the sugar farmers, Lotilla added.

"We are developing our indigenous energy resources, particularly renewables, and at the same time expanding the market for our sugar," Lotilla said.

The government’s ethanol program aims to intensify the use of biofuels in the transport sector by blending a minimum of five percent bioethanol fuel into all gasoline-fed motor vehicles and a minimum of one percent biodiesel into all diesel-fed motor vehicles.

Ethanol is an alternative energy resource produced from crops such as corn, grain sorghum, wheat, sugar and other agricultural feedstocks. It can be used as a transportation fuel in three ways – as a blend to gasoline, a component of reformulated gasoline, or a primary fuel with gasoline as blend.

The SCBI integrated facility will reportedly have a cane milling plant with a through-put capacity of 1,500 metric tons of cane daily and a co-generation power plant that will have a production of about nine megawatts. It has likewise a distillery plant which will also produce 100,000 liters of bio-ethanol a day.

The National Fuel Ethanol Program encourages private entities to invest in the production of biofuels and distribution of biofuel blends.

The government is aiming to enhance the country’s energy self-sufficiency level to 60 percent by 2010.

While the transport sector is still heavily dependent on imported oil, the country has steadily reduced its reliance on imported oil as energy source. Last year, the DOE spearheaded the introduction of coco methyl ester (CME) as an alternative transport fuel.

DOE is now preparing for the launch of the compressed natural gas (CNG) project as fuel for the initial 200 buses which will ply the Manila-Batangas route later this year.

Lotilla said the program will be expanded to 3,000 buses in the next 18 months.

[renell]

Intermodal transport terminal to rise in QC

Posted 10:21pm (Mla time) May 27, 2005
By Tarra Quismundo
Inquirer News Service

BENT on showing it could work amid controversy, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) yesterday sealed a deal for a multi-million peso project that would create an organized transport terminal on Edsa.

The agency yesterday forged an agreement with private company New San Jose Builder's Inc. (NSJBI) to begin construction of the North Road Rail Station Phase 2, a project that would complete an intermodal transport facility for northern Metro Manila.

Through a Memorandum of Agreement the MMDA signed with NSJBI yesterday afternoon, the agency has been allowed to use a 7,100-sqm property leased to the firm for the construction of a sprawling transport terminal.

To settle any legal problem that may ensue, the MMDA said the project had been approved two years ago by the Metro Manila Council, the agency's policy-making body, through Resolution No. 03-07.

Working as a team

"I trust in living the concept of working as a team. My colleagues in the MMC will always see the MMDA as a partner in the search for the best formula to manage traffic in the metropolis," MMDA Chair Bayani Fernando said in a statement.

The project, which the agency estimated may cost at least P25 million, would begin in July. It is expected to be completed early next year.

The terminal would be built near the North Avenue Station of the Metro Rail Transit.

[612bv3]

What happened to the plan to get rid of the poluting buses with more enviroment friendly buses?

[amras]

i think those buses are coming later this year. and they are for provincial operations.

[bustero]

Those buses will be for Manila Batngas routes first, for MM I think realistically several years down the line pa iyan.

[renell]

..... how about the ones plying MM? I reckon it should be priority, get our capital region pollution levels down

[stephencua]

taken from inq7.net

Personalities endorse coco-biodiesel in TV commercial
Posted: 7:54 AM | Jun. 10, 2005

BAGUIO CITY -- Congressman and TV program host Juan Miguel Zubiri, actor Joel Torre and broadcaster Ernie Baron have given their services for free for a 30-second video to be shown on TV to promote alternative fuels.

A 10-minute educational video will also be viewed soon in the more than 200 buses that run on compressed natural gas.


Alternative or indigenous fuels include CNG, coco-biodiesel and ethanol fuel.

Zubiri said, "It's just that the idea [of using alternative fuels] is an advocacy of mine and I wouldn't mind selling the idea to the people."

In the video, the young congressman drives a CNG-powered bus and talks about the benefits of switching to alternative fuels.

"This is the wave of the future," he said. "Oil prices will soon be selling for $100 a barrel. We will surely run out of fossil fuels. We need to find alternative fuels now."

"As it turns out, our fuels will be planted in soil," Zubiri said, citing ethanol, which is produced from sugarcane and sorghum, and targeted for gasoline-powered engines, and coco-biodiesel.

Zubiri is the author of a bill in the House of Representatives that seeks to promote use of renewable energy.

He noted that his travel-oriented TV magazine show, "Team Explorer," ad also explored renewable energy. "I remember someone saying that anybody who invests in the future now will win," he said.

Divina Chingcuanco, country director of the sustainable energy development program, said: "We have many strong advocates in the entertainment industry. And we are aware of the strength of the entertainment industry in getting people interested in alternative fuels." With INQ7.net

[tyronne]

Shell to open first CNG facility


Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. is scheduled to open today the country’s first ever compressed natural gas (CNG) mother refuelling station in Tabangao, Batangas and its daughter station.


The facility is expected to benefit an initial fleet of 200 CNG-fed public utility buses.

The project is Shell’s response to clamor for cheaper alternative fuel which is also environment friendly. It means to supply public transport buses with natural gas produced by the Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power project offshore under the government’s Natural Gas Vehicle Program for Public Transport (NGVPPT).

The NGVPPT was launched by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in October 2001 to enhance energy supply security in the transport sector by using natural gas as alternative fuel.

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation (Pilipinas Shell) signed a supplement to the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Department of Energy (DoE), which finally paved the way for the offering of CNG for public utility buses. The supplement indicated the final negotiated CNG price for the first 200 buses for a period of seven years.

CNG would be available at a fixed price of R14.52 per cubic meter for the next seven years in a bid to spur the use of the alternative fuel in the transport industry.

When the CNG stations start to operate, the Malampaya natural gas will be compressed into cylinders at the CNG mother station in Tabangao, Batangas. From there, the CNG will be transported by land to the daughter retail station in Biñan, Laguna located along the northbound lane of the South Luzon Expressway.

Some 70 gas powered provincial buses which are expected to ply the Batangas-Manila and Manila-Batangas routes shall be the initial fleet of buses to be served by the CNG stations. The CNG-powered buses mark the first non-power utilization of the Malampaya natural gas.

Source