The Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) project, initially funded with P10.6 billion in 2014, has seen its budget balloon to P29 billion by 2025, yet remains incomplete after 12 years. Construction on sections from N. Bacalso Avenue to Osmeña Blvd has caused significant traffic congestion, exacerbating delays. Due to these prolonged setbacks, the World Bank has withdrawn its funding, dealing a major blow to the project's financial stability.
Funding Breakdown and Withdrawal
Originally, the funding package totaled $228.5 million, with contributions including a $116 million loan from the World Bank, $25 million from the Clean Technology Fund, $57.4 million from the French Development Agency, and counterpart funds from the Philippine government. The World Bank's exit highlights the challenges in implementing large-scale infrastructure projects in the region, contrasting with other scandals like the flood control corruption cases that involved trillions of pesos but were quickly executed yet substandard or ghost projects.
Proposed Metro Cebu Subway
In response to these issues, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) has proposed the Metro Cebu Subway, a 67.5-kilometer underground railway system stretching from Danao City in the north to Carcar City in the south. If realized, this would be the first subway system outside Metro Manila, with an estimated cost in the hundreds of billions of pesos.
Advantages Over Existing Projects
Unlike highway and light railway transit systems, the subway faces no right-of-way issues as it runs underground, avoiding problems like landslides that have plagued the unfinished Metro Cebu Expressway from Naga City to Danao City. Proponents argue that the subway could alleviate traffic congestion in Metro Cebu, freeing up roads for emergency vehicles and modern jeepneys to access train stations, while most passengers would travel by train.
Feasibility Concerns
However, questions linger about the subway's viability. Critics ask, "Who will ride the train if there is no train yet?" and doubt whether the system will ever be completed. The ideal vision includes connecting Danao City, towns like Compostela, Liloan, and Consolacion, cities such as Mandaue, Cebu, and Talisay, and areas like Minglanilla, Naga City, San Fernando, and Carcar City, but this depends on overcoming the same implementation hurdles that stalled the CBRT.
The CBRT serves as a cautionary tale of the difficulties in executing major infrastructure projects, while the Metro Cebu Subway represents a hopeful yet uncertain future for the region's transportation network.
