President Rodrigo Duterte yesterday inaugurated the Paranaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX), a modern intermodal terminal that will service commuters between Metro Manila and nearby provinces in Calabarzon.
Dubbed as the Philippines’ «first landport,» the PITX is a 4.5-hectare «all-in-one» terminal housing transportation bays, commercial spaces, and office buildings.
In his speech at the event, the President hails PITX as one of three intermodal transport terminals to be constructed with the help of the private sector.
Duterte lauded the facilities of the landport, saying it would operate like an airport and would provide state-of-the-art ticketing and reservation services.
The President directed the DOTr, MWM Terminals to implement necessary measures «to ensure all transport vehicles using PITX are road-worthy and complies with our environmental laws and proper documentation as well».
The terminal building composed of three levels. Departure bays for buses, jeepneys, and taxis are situated on the ground floor, while bus arrival bays are located on the second floor. The third floor is dedicated to private car parking facilities, AUV bays.
PITX has a terminal capacity of 200,000 passengers per day with an expected footfall of close to 100,000 passengers daily.
The terminal systems are designed to be passenger-friendly, such as the assured seating system for buses, public information displays in multiple locations and ample seating throughout. Automated boarding pass scanners will ensure that passengers can board buses only during their chosen trip schedules.
The terminal will be eventually linked to the planned Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT1) Cavite extension.
According to MWM Terminal president Louie Ferrer, atop the PITX are four office-grade towers that will allow tenants to benefit from the facility’s strategic location and 24/7 safe and friendly transport access. Each tower has a total of 17,900 square meters of net leasable area. The first tower will open in the first half of 2019.
He said, inside the terminal are 12,000 square meters of leasable space that will feature F&B, retail and service options which will open by December this year.
PITX will also feature special facilities not normally found in other land terminals.
«We conducted studies on what passengers on-the-go often look for. We are catering a diverse set of customers,» Ferrer said.
The terminal will have pay lounges with shower rooms in consideration of passengers needing to freshen up after a long travel. There is also a comfortable breastfeeding area for mothers, and a multi-faith meditation room.
Another highlight of the PITX facility is the gender neutral bathroom.
«We felt it was important to have a gender neutral bathroom in PITX for passengers who are gender nonconforming, and for parents who have to accompany young children of a different gender to the bathroom. We may be the first public facility to have incorporated this into our design,» he said.
The PITX is a flagship project under the government’s Build, Build,Build infrastructure program. It was awarded to MWM Terminals, a consortium of Megawide Construction Corporation and WM Property Management, under a 35-year build-operate-transfer concession with the government.
Source: The Big News Network