The Quezon City council is asking the Department of Transportation to revert the alignment of its subway project to its original EDSA alignment from the proposed Katipunan route.
It urged the city engineering office to withhold the issuance of all business and construction permits related to the subway project implementation.
In a two-page resolution, the committee on ways and means, chaired by District 1 Councilor Victor Ferrer Jr., raised concern that the Katipunan route is “earthquake risk,” a “disruption to residents in villages and other residential areas” and a “sub-optimal station location,” and that the subway project would affect the land property and land valuation in the area, thus impact the city’s revenue generation.
Citing a study of the Japan International Cooperative Agency, the resolution said the original EDSA alignment is most optimal, feasible and beneficial to the commuters of Metro Manila based on specific criteria, such as safety, social and local environment impact, connectivity to other modes of transportation and efficiency of service.
Moreover, the study showed the EDSA route is the cheapest in terms of cost to the government.
“Bearing in mind that it is the people who will eventually bear the cost of the project, this committee notes that the proposed Katipunan alignment, costing P350 billion or more, is more expensive compared to the original EDSA alignment, which was estimated to only cost P208 billion,” the resolution read.
The measure was approved by Ferrer and Councilors Ramon Medalla, Winston Castelo, Lena Marie Juico, Franz Pumaren, Eric Medina, Allan Butch Francisco, Bernard Herrera, Resty Malangen and Wencerom Benedict Lagumbay.
According to Ferrer, the committee was able to conduct two public hearings on Oct. 15 and Nov. 29 last year.
He clarified that the city government backed the project.
“As public servants, our concern is the general welfare of the public. As elected officials of Quezon City, our primary focus is to look after the best interest of the residents, in particular their safety, convenience and access to public transportation services. These two aims are not mutually exclusive and in fact, both are geared toward ensuring the common good and welfare of the people,” the committee said.
