The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Tuesday it expects to complete the feasibility study on the Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake Ferry (MAPALLAF) System project within the year.
“We are working with the Philippine Public-Private Partnership Center on what we call the Manila Bay, Pasig River, Marikina River and Laguna Lake ferry system. So this is something that’s currently under study,” DOTr assistant secretary Leonel de Velez said.
“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,” he said.
The MAPALLAF project is expected to revolutionize the transportation landscape by establishing a high-capacity, high-frequency and low carbon ferry system that will connect Manila Bay and Laguna Lake through the Pasig River.
Velez said the feasibility study is expected to be completed this year and be offered to the private sector by 2025.
“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,” he said.
“We need to understand how many people will actually use the 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,” Velez said.
The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) operates the Pasig River Ferry Service (PRFS) which served 254,333 passengers in 2023 and 46,497 commuters in the first quarter of 2024.
The proposed MAPALLAF system is the proposed expansion of the PRFS to widen the reach and accessibility of water transportation in the Philippines.
It is also in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Executive Order No. 35, which aims to revive the beauty and vitality of the Pasig River for transportation and tourism.
