Transport group flags zero funding for EDSA busway in DOTr’s proposed 2027 budget

BUSWAY. Public utility buses queue for passengers at the Pasay EDSA busway/carousel on March 24, 2026.

Rappler

Move as One Coalition also questions the absence of funding for service contracting and fuel subsidies for transport drivers in the proposed 2027 budget of Department of Transportation

MANILA, Philippines – Active transport advocacy group Move as One Coalition on Tuesday, August 18, flagged the absence of funding for the EDSA Busway, the service contracting program, and fuel subsidies for transport drivers in the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) proposed 2027 budget.

“A supermajority — 94% — of Filipinos do not own cars; 94% support the construction of safer, wider bicycle lanes and walkways. Why are their mobility needs not reflected in the proposed National Expenditure Program 2027?” the coalition said in a statement.

The EDSA Busway, listed as the National Capital Region (NCR) Busway Project, received P88.7 million in the 2026 budget.

In early 2025, Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla and Metropolitan Manila Development Authority Chairman Don Artes announced that there was a plan to scrap the bus system. This was later refuted by DOTr.

For 2026, DOTr had allocated P1 billion for its service contracting program. This program allows passengers to enjoy discounted fares and public transportation drivers to earn from the government amid the Middle East oil crisis.

Move as One also questioned the lack of funding for road safety in the DOTr’s 2027 budget proposal.

The group also noted significant cuts to the Public Transport Modernization Program, whose allocation fell from P2.5 billion in 2026 to P176.8 million in 2027. Funding for active transportation was also cut from P105.38 million to P33.8 million in the proposed 2027 budget.

Rappler has reached out to the DOTr for a statement on the absence and lack of funding for these key transportation programs and projects. This story will be updated once they respond.

In an online press conference on Tuesday, Move as One Active transport lead Abigail Modales described the decline in the active transportation budget in the past few years, “not a dip” but a “collapse.”

The DOTr has consistently seen its budget reduced from the proposed amount to the final approved budget. For 2027, the DOTr is seeking a P251.6 billion budget.

As Congress begins deliberations on the proposed 2027 budget, Move as One urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and lawmakers “to invest sufficient funds in public transport, active mobility, and transport reforms and build a transportation system that is more responsive to the needs of the majority and more resilient to future crises.”

The House appropriations committee will take up the proposed DOTr budget next week, on Thursday, September 3. – Rappler.com