DOTr Plans 2027 EDSA Busway Takeover as Funding Gap Threatens Repairs and Expansion

One agency to run the busway and maintain its footbridges

MANILA, November 13, 2026. The Department of Transportation plans to take over EDSA Busway operations and footbridge maintenance in 2027, Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said Friday, after broken elevators and faulty lights exposed gaps in the upkeep of one of Metro Manila's busiest public transport corridors.

The announcement comes as the department seeks PHP1.756 billion for the busway after its allocation was reduced to zero in the proposed 2027 National Expenditure Program. The promise to take responsibility for repairs now sits alongside a budget request that would help pay for security, elevator maintenance and station upkeep.

Dizon said bringing operations and footbridge maintenance under the DOTr would end the practice of passing responsibility between the department and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, or MMDA. He said elevator repairs had been delayed for about four months because both agencies lacked funds.

The transportation secretary described the planned change this way:

"So I said, next year in 2027, the DOTr will run the entire busway operation. I will tell the MMDA (Metropolitan Manila Development Authority) that the DOTr will also maintain the footbridges, so there is no more passing responsibility back and forth, and we will ensure there is a budget because sometimes there is none," Dizon said.

For passengers, the immediate concerns are practical: reaching stations without having to climb stairs, crossing adequately lit footbridges and finding enough buses during the holiday rush. The department has added 50 buses, taking the fleet to around 400, and plans another 50 in December.

A commuter's complaint brought elevator failures into focus

Victoria Chan, a commuter aged 66, approached Dizon during his November 2 visit to the Guadalupe Busway station to complain that its elevators were not working. Dizon subsequently inspected the repaired elevators at the Guadalupe overpass.

The secretary said he had been unaware of the fault when Chan raised it. Describing the encounter and the subsequent repair, Dizon said:

"We spoke to a senior commuter, a grandmother, last time. We were here when this Guadalupe busway station opened two weeks ago, and she complained. I didn't know these weren't working. Now they are," Dizon said.

A working elevator can determine whether an older passenger or someone with limited mobility can reach a busway platform comfortably. More buses help people waiting at the station, while functioning access facilities help them get there in the first place.

Dizon's November 13 account described work on six previously nonoperational elevators, including those at Guadalupe, Phil-Am and Kamuning. In his announcement about the November bus deployment, he described seven faulty elevators, four already repaired, with those at Bagong Barrio, Balintawak and Monumento still out of service. The department did not explain the different totals or station lists.

Dizon hoped the remaining repairs would be completed within two weeks of the November 13 inspection, putting that target in late November. He also said he would inspect elevators as work progressed.

Cable theft, rubbish and lighting add to maintenance demands

Dizon blamed the theft of elevator cables for some of the damage and said security would be strengthened to prevent further incidents. That makes security spending part of the effort to keep access facilities running, alongside the money needed for repairs.

Rubbish thrown onto elevators was another possible cause of trouble, according to the secretary. He said the additional weight could affect elevator sensors. His explanation pointed to a need for cleaning and protection of the equipment as well as mechanical work.

The DOTr is also examining complaints about lights that do not work along the overpass. Commuters said the darkness made the area feel unsafe, particularly at night and in the early morning.

The busway has 23 stations operating around the clock. Maintaining lights, elevators and footbridges therefore supports travel beyond the busiest daytime hours, including journeys made when fewer people are around.

The 2027 budget proposal leaves a major funding gap

Acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez appealed for the restoration of PHP1.756 billion at the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines Infrastructure Forum in Makati on October 19, 2026. He had first raised concerns about the zero allocation at a Senate finance subcommittee hearing in September.

The National Expenditure Program is the government's proposed spending plan. Congress considers that proposal before the national budget becomes law, so the busway's zero allocation was a proposal under debate, with the DOTr pressing for funding to be restored.

Lopez warned that a lack of money would leave the system without funds for security salaries and make it difficult to maintain stations or repair broken elevators. Those are the same types of problems that Dizon's November takeover announcement sought to address.

The Department of Budget and Management cited tightening fiscal space for excluding the EDSA Busway, the Service Contracting Program and the Fuel Subsidy Program from the proposed 2027 budget. In simple terms, the government said it had less room in its finances to fund these programs.

Placing maintenance responsibility with one department would give commuters a clearer agency to hold accountable. Paying for that work remains a separate task. The PHP1.756 billion request is therefore central to whether the DOTr can deliver the routine upkeep promised under its planned takeover.

More buses are being added before the holiday rush

Dizon instructed the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, or LTFRB, and the DOTr's road sector to deploy 50 additional buses starting November 12. The increase was intended to prepare for the ASEAN summit and the Christmas season.

The department identified long queues and traffic buildup near Ortigas and SM Megamall as particular concerns. Dizon said the additional service could accommodate 30,000 more passengers a day.

The first deployment brought the fleet to around 400 buses. Another 50 planned for December would bring it to around 450, an increase of about 12.5 percent from the November total. The figures are approximate because the department described the fleet totals as around those levels.

The 30,000 figure describes the additional daily passenger volume the department expects the service increase to accommodate. For commuters, the intended result is shorter queues during a period when travel demand is expected to rise.

The LTFRB was also scheduled to hold its first hearing on Thursday, November 12, into allegations that EDSA Busway operators overcharged passengers. Administrative proceedings had begun under acting chairman Greg Pua Jr.; the department said it would await their outcome. Fare enforcement adds another immediate concern alongside capacity and station access.

Expansion targets three new stops in 2027

The DOTr plans additional stations in Cubao, Magallanes and the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange, commonly called PITX. Lopez said the department expected to add the three stations in the first quarter of the following year, while the modernization plans identify 2027 as the intended opening year.

A notice of award dated December 29, 2025, gave Unimasters Conglomeration, Inc. a PHP251.06 million contract for the design and construction of new busway stations and footbridges. Existing stations at Bagong Barrio in Caloocan, Balintawak in Quezon City and Guadalupe in Makati are also part of the rehabilitation program.

The department projects 70 million passenger journeys for 2026, citing expected improvements from modernization. Lopez separately cited about 63 million annual users when discussing the budget risk. The figures describe a forecast and an annual usage estimate, respectively.

From its launch in 2020 through August 2026, the busway carried more than 367 million passengers, according to figures presented by Lopez. The scale of use helps explain why a broken lift or a missing maintenance allocation can affect far more than a single station.

Lopez also compared the space used by buses and private vehicles. He said a bus carries at least 50 passengers, or up to 70 with standing passengers, compared with about five in a private vehicle. Using those figures, one bus can carry the equivalent of 10 to 14 cars filled with five people each.

Modernization takes priority while privatization is studied

Undersecretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure Mark Steven Pastor said station upgrades were taking priority over privatizing operations and maintenance, particularly amid fuel price increases. The department had previously hoped to privatize the system by 2026 or 2027.

Pastor said the DOTr was awaiting a feasibility study before deciding how to proceed. Such a study examines whether a proposed project can work financially and operationally. He said no privatization proposals had been submitted at the time of his remarks.

Pastor explained the department's immediate priority while speaking on the sidelines of the Philippine Road Safety Summit 2026:

"We continue to improve the bus stops, to provide the necessary infrastructure while we are awaiting the decision on the planned privatization," he said.

The department has considered inviting bids after station upgrades. The study is also examining whether to use a solicited process, in which the government invites companies to bid, or an unsolicited process, in which a company puts forward a proposal.

Dizon's planned government takeover sets out who would manage the busway in 2027, while the privatization study concerns a possible later arrangement. A final privatization decision and the detailed terms of the operational handover have not been announced.

Limited funding is shaping other transport priorities too. Pastor said a proposed busway along Quezon Avenue and España was not a current priority, while the department was focusing on the Cebu bus rapid transit system, including traffic signal upgrades. Cebu's remaining phases 2A and 3A cover 13 stations and 62 stops, with completion due by the end of 2028.

The dates behind the takeover plan

The busway's funding debate, repair work and expansion plans run across several budget and construction deadlines. The main dates show how immediate service problems connect with the planned change in management.

• December 29, 2025: A PHP251.06 million contract for new stations and footbridges was awarded to Unimasters Conglomeration, Inc.
• September 2026: Lopez raised the effects of the proposed zero busway allocation during a Senate finance subcommittee hearing.
• October 19, 2026: Lopez appealed for restoration of PHP1.756 billion at an infrastructure forum in Makati.
• November 2, 2026: Victoria Chan raised the Guadalupe elevator problem with Dizon.
• November 12, 2026: The additional 50 buses were scheduled to begin service, and the LTFRB's first overcharging hearing was scheduled.
• November 13, 2026: Dizon announced the planned 2027 takeover and expressed hope that remaining elevator repairs would be finished within two weeks.
• December 2026: Another 50 buses are planned for deployment.
• 2027: The DOTr plans to assume busway operations and footbridge maintenance, with three additional stations targeted for the first quarter.

The nearest milestones are the remaining elevator repairs and December's bus deployment. The larger test for 2027 is whether funding, station construction and the transfer of maintenance duties can support the service the department has promised.

Key Points

• The DOTr plans to take over EDSA Busway operations and footbridge maintenance in 2027.
• The department is seeking PHP1.756 billion after the proposed 2027 spending plan allocated no funding to the busway.
• Elevator repairs and faulty overpass lighting are immediate concerns, with remaining repair work targeted for late November.
• Fifty additional buses bring the fleet to around 400, with another 50 planned for December.
• New stations are planned at Cubao, Magallanes and PITX in 2027.
• Station modernization is proceeding while the department awaits a study on possible privatization.