Archival wants CBRT buses on the street until July

Cebu City, Philippine television The long -lasting Cebu Bus Rapid Transit (CBRT) project finally buses on the street next month?

The elected mayor-nestor archive Sr. said that in the first week of July he was pressing for a dry bus along the CBR parcel 1 as soon as he officially accepts an office.

However, since the pace of work is “very slow”, it is skeptical that the contractor will comply with the deadline on June 30, 2025 to complete the segment.

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In an interview, Archival said CBRT Project Manager Engr. Norvin Imbong from the Ministry of Transport (Dotr) committed to the end of package 1 until the end of June. The segment covers the 2.38-kilometer route along the Osmeña Boulevard from Cebu South Bus Terminal on the Bacals Avenue N. Bacals to Cebu Provincial Capitol.

“When I am on July 1st, let's see if we can take the package 1,” said Archival.

He said he planned to convene the CBRT Technical Working Group in the coming weeks in order to prepare for a potential test run. He also mentioned that Ceres Bus Liner set up to use a device for this first company.

However, archiving expressed concerns about the slow progress of the construction work, especially about the construction of sidewalks and bus stops along the corridor, of which he said that they are still far from stopping far from.

“It's a very small person to work. I will never look at them if they don't have enough people,” said Archival after the website inspected on June 5.

He criticized the contractor, the Chinese company Hunan Road and Bridge Construction Group Co. Ltd., for the slow pace and said that the government's supervision may be missing.

“If there was a harvest harvest, she would have been made clear,” he added.

The incoming mayor will meet with the contractor on Tuesday, June 10, to request an explanation and urge the urgent completion of package 1.

Missed deadlines

This is not the first time that the CBRT project was behind the schedule.

Package 1 was originally completed in the fourth quarter of 2023 and was pushed to the first quarter of 2024 until June 30th and again until June 30th.

In June 2024, the CBRT officials announced an “indefinite delay” when completing package 1 after Cebu Guerverneur Gwendolyn Garcia hired the citizens' work near the Heritage zones along the Osmeña Boulevard, including the Capitol and Fuente Osmeña.

The current segment is part of phase 1 of the CBRT, which extends over 13.18 kilometers and includes 17 stations, a depot and a terminal. The complete operations are now targeted for 2027.

The cost of the project has also increased – from its original budget of 16.3 billion peseters to 28.78 billion peseters.

Consequences for the contractor

The archiving warned that the current contractor, if package 1 is not as obliged, can be disqualified from the takeover of the next CBRT packages.

“The finish or not is an essential report on the government. But I doubt that there is simply the advantage of the doubt,” he said.

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Archival said that as an incoming mayor, he will prioritize the CBRT construction and the improvement of the accountability obligation in project implementers. He also made a concern that further delays could risk losing project financing from the World Bank.

One of the main obstacles is now the inability of the contractor to scale the workforce and complete the sidewalks in good time.

“The edges are too short, when it comes, the floor goes to the sidewalk. It is never finished,” said Archival.

Despite his doubts, Archival said that he was still obliged to do everything to advance the CBRT project as soon as he takes office.

“In the first week of July it is a busy bus. If it is just a rain, let's see the bus at the train station,” he said.

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