Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez expressed support for the modernization of the Subic Container Port to help ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila.
Alvarez, a representative of Davao del Norte and secretary-general of President Rodrigo Duterte’s political party PDP-Laban, said modernizing the Subic port and optimizing its use will ease traffic jams in the capital that has caused productivity losses of at least P2.4 million a day.
The lawmaker said expanding the volume of the Subic port was a “good idea” that will benefit not just Metro Manila but will spur economic growth in Central and Northern Luzon as well.
The SCP has a capacity of 600,000 containers, but it moved only around 123,000 last year.
A study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency found that the port will ably and easily absorb northbound cargo.
JICA said there is also cost advantage ranging from $100 to $200 per container for shippers from Pampanga and Zambales to ship through Subic instead of passing through Manila ports.
The study showed a capacity shortage of 14 million containers for the Pacific Region, with Singapore already reaching its limit and Hong Kong remaining severely silted.
For his part, former House speaker and Quezon City Rep. Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said maximizing Subic port was “a great idea.”
Quezon City Rep. Alfred Vargas, vice chairman of the House committee on appropriations, added that the proposal will translate to more economic activity in Subic and in neighboring areas.
“This means more jobs and more opportunities. These can hopefully translate to social development in that part of the country,” he said.
“This plan, coupled with increased infrastructure spending particularly on interconnecting roads, alternative highways like C6 and bridges across the island of Luzon, will definitely solve a lot of urban management, environmental and economic issues,” Vargas added.
The SCP is a significant component of the Subic-Clark Alliance for Development (SCAD) strategy, which includes the construction of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTex), and the Clark International Airport to form a global logistics hub and international gateway for Central Luzon.
Earlier, experts also noted existing road networks leading to and from the Manila North Harbor can no longer accommodate the high volume of cargo, resulting in a perennial traffic problem.
The Metro Manila Development Authority said the seven choke points on EDSA and the roads leading to the Manila North Harbor–the Circumferential Road – 3 (C-3 Road), A. Mabini Street, Dagat-Dagatan Avenue, North Bay Boulevard and Radial Road 10 (R-10)–are among the most traffic-prone areas to unclog which needs emergency powers for Duterte.
Isabela Rep. Rodolfo Albano III said goods and commodities bound for Central and Northern Luzon no longer need to pass through Metro Manila if Subic’s operations are optimized.
“It is indeed a great idea. It is about time we discuss the Subic Port modernization project,” Albano said.
Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone said prioritizing the Subic port modernization in the government’s roster of solutions to the traffic woes in Metro Manila will also spur economic growth across Central and North Luzon.