CITY OF SAN FERNANDO — The proposed Pampanga Mass Transit System is already up for the approval of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) in a bid to provide integrated road network linking urban centers and industrial areas in this province.
Study team leader Dr. Hussein Lidasan who led the presentation of the project to the NEDA last Tuesday, said the project “would provide a viable, environment-friendly transportation mode for the province.”
The road system proposal was pushed by outgoing House Speaker and Pampanga 2nd District Rep. Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo who has vowed to continue backing the Pampanga Megalopolis Plan that covers the new road project.
She described the megalopolis plan as “the vision of the Pampanga government to attract more establishments, investments, and tourists by creating infrastructure projects such as roads and train systems giving people direct and fast access to airports.”
The mass transit proposal said the project would “establish a transit system that will guarantee inclusive mobility and accessibility in the province, provide connectivity to an urban center, production areas, residential areas, commercial and industrial centers, and institutional and services areas.”
The cost of the project has yet to be announced.
The proposal said the project would “be anchored on clean technology for an environmentally sustainable province and be supported by smart technology system for efficient and reliable operation and efficient fare collection system.”
Meanwhile, Mrs. Arroyo reiterated that she will quit politics after her term, but that she would continue to be a consultant of the Pampanga provincial government and focus on the Pampanga Megalopolis Plan.
“They asked me to help them from time to time, to be a consultant. So, I’d be happy to do that. Tapos sinabi ko where I think I can help is to follow through on the implementation of Pampanga Megalopolis Plan,” she said.
