Study for Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake ferry system done within the year —DOTr

The ongoing study that will determine the viability of establishing the Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake Ferry (MAPALLAF) System project is expected to be completed within this year, an official of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Tuesday.

At the sidelines of the Asia and the Pacific Transport in Mandaluyong City, Transportation Assistant Secretary Leonel de Velez told reporters that the DOTr is working with the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center to put up the MAPALLAF.

The proposed MAPALLAF is seen to be a high-capacity, high-frequency, and low carbon ferry system that will connect Manila Bay and Laguna Lake through the Pasig River.

"This is something that's currently under study. This is part of the initiative of the President and the First Lady to really enhance the Pasig River and make it really livable again, so that we can have good urban developments, good walking spaces, and this is part of the whole-of-government approach to the Pasig River,” de Velez said.

“One of the major aspects of the study is the demand. So before we make important infrastructure investments, similar to our railways or airports, we need to conduct passenger surveys. We need to understand how many people will actually use the system,” he said.

According to the DOTr official, the feasibility study is seen to be completed within 2024.

“It's currently ongoing, with the PPP Center. So we hope to have the study within the year,” de Velez said.

Once the study is complete, the Transportation official said the proposed MAPALLAF will go through a series of government approvals before it can be contracted out to a private partner.

“We're looking at having this as a public-private partnership…. with that, we would have to go to the NEDA Board and all the other government agencies,” de Velez said.

He said the project could be bided out to interested parties next year. 

De Velez said the project cost of the MAPALLAF is yet to be determined by the ongoing study.

“That's currently what we're doing. It all stems from the demand. So it all starts from how many people will be using this ferry system. For example… If we have 100,000 passengers, then that will determine the number of ferry stations, that will determine the number of the ferry boats… that's when we will determine the cost."

The DOTr official said establishing the MAPALLAF is aimed at providing an alternative east-west transportation corridor in the National Capital Region. 

“As we know, we have the North-South Commuter Railway. We have the Metro-Middle Subway. Those are, if you see the maps, those are primarily north-south corridors. We do not have as many as what we call east-west corridors for mass transportation and the Pasig River naturally is there and it traverses east-west,” de Velez said.

— LA, GMA Integrated News