Good news to all commuters in the metro! Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is cooking up something that would make our Manila commuting lives a little bit better! Read the official press release below to know more about it!
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| "Using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, the DOTC gathered data on more than nine hundred (900) bus, train, and jeepney routes." |
DOTC TO MAKE
COMMUTING IN METRO MANILA MORE CONVENIENT
Previously-unavailable
Transit Data Now Ready, Organized
Manila, Philippines – An exhaustive, two
(2)-year effort to gather and organize previously-unavailable data on buses,
jeepneys, and trains in Metro Manila has been completed by the Department of
Transportation and Communications (DOTC), now making it possible for commuters
to plan their trips more efficiently and conveniently.
The
initiative of building the Philippine Transit Information Service (PTIS) began
in 2011, at a time when the Transport agency could not immediately provide
certain essential information to commuters, such as the best route to take at a
particular time, as well as the travel times involved.
“The
need to gather reliable data at that time in order to deliver convenient and
efficient services to the public was immediately recognized and pursued,”
explained DOTC spokesperson Migs Sagcal.
Using
Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, the DOTC gathered data on more than
nine hundred (900) bus, train, and jeepney routes. It also collected useful information such as
the fares and amounts of time required to take these various modes of
transport.
Following
this, the data was organized and analyzed by the DOTC along with other
concerned offices such as the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA),
the Land Transportation Franchising & Regulatory Board (LTFRB), the Light
Rail Transit Authority (LRTA), and the Metro Rail Transit Corporation (MRTC).
As
a result, it will now be possible to find out what a commuter’s options are to
get from one point to another in Metro Manila, what types of transportation and
how many transfers will be involved, and how much money and time each option
will require.
“Our
next step is to make the PTIS accessible to the public. The intention has always been to use modern
technology in empowering people to make well-informed decisions on their
commute,” added Sagcal.
The
two (2)-year data gathering and analysis effort was made possible by a grant
from the World Bank, which also funded a similar project of the Cebu City
Government to make its traffic management efforts more advanced.
The
DOTC, MMDA, and the Cebu City Government will be hosting a three month-long
competition called the Philippine Transit App Challenge along with other
government agencies beginning this month, where individuals and groups mainly from
the Information Technology (IT) industry will compete to develop applications
using the PTIS database, which the public may then use to choose their best
routes at any given time.
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This reminds me of the commuting system / online portal of Singapore. I've always been impressed on how organized and efficient this process is, most especially for tourists. In all honesty, I'm very excited to see a similar practice here in the Philippines.
What do you guys think?
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This reminds me of the commuting system / online portal of Singapore. I've always been impressed on how organized and efficient this process is, most especially for tourists. In all honesty, I'm very excited to see a similar practice here in the Philippines.
What do you guys think?
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