The Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake (MAPALLA) ferry system may be greenlit after its feasibility study is completed in the first half of 2025, an official of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Thursday.
“Nakikita po natin na matatapos ang feasibility study nito by the first half of this year. Inaasahan natin na by the middle of 2025 makakakuha na tayo ng approval para sa proyektong ito (We’re expecting the feasibility study to conclude by the first half of the year. We’re also expecting it to be approved by the middle of 2025),” DOTr Undersecretary for Planning and Project Development Timothy John Batan said in an interview over Radyo Pilipinas.
The project seeks to provide commuters with an additional and efficient transit system by using the arterial rivers of Pasig and Marikina, as well as Manila and Laguna Bay.
It will use “high-capacity, high-frequency and low carbon commuter vessels” through several electric ferries, Batan said.
“[We’re] making the most of what’s already there kasi nandyan na po ang mga ilog, ang Laguna Bay at Manila Bay. Kailangan na lang po nating maglagay ng high-capacity ferry system (because the rivers are there, Laguna and Manila Bay. We just need to place a high-capacity ferry system),” he said.
The project is a partnership between the DOTr and the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center.
Once approved, the project’s first phase will cover a 30-kilometer stretch of the Marikina River and Pasig River and the construction of at least 32 ferry stations. It will be plied by 40 electric ferries that can accommodate 100 to 150 passengers in a single trip.
Batan said the project will be patterned after the Chao Phraya River Ferry System in Bangkok, Thailand, and the New York Ferry System in the United States.
Once completed, the MAPALLA ferry system will also be connected with other transit systems and active mobility networks. (PNA)