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The feasibility study for the Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake Ferry Project (MAPALLA) is still being finalized
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The study is being aligned with the Philippine Ports Authority’s proposed Pasig River Intermodal Transport Project, which will affect the scope of the MAPALLA study
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DOTr chief communications development officer John Patrick Dayao said no timeline yet for completion of the study but hopes it can be finalized next year
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Once done, the study will be submitted to the Economy and Development Council, chaired by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., for approval
The feasibility study for the Manila Bay-Pasig River-Laguna Lake Ferry Project (MAPALLA) is still being finalized, according to an official of the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
The study, with funding approved back in December 2022, is being aligned with the Philippine Ports Authority’s (PPA) proposed Pasig River Intermodal Transport Project, DOTr chief communications development officer John Patrick Dayao told media on the sidelines of the Norway-Philippines Electric Ferries Conference 2025 on November 4.
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The PPA project will affect the scope of the MAPALLA study. It aims to rehabilitate the Pasig River ferry by developing stations, deploying watercraft, and dredging the river. PPA general manager Jay Daniel Santiago earlier said the PPA is ready to allocate as much as P800 million a year to sustain the project.
Dayao said there is no definite timeline on completion of the MAPALLA feasibility study but hopes it will be finished next year.
Once done, the study will be submitted to the Economy and Development Council, chaired by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., for approval.
The MAPALLA project involves financing, design, construction, purchase, operations, and maintenance of a high-capacity high frequency, low-carbon ferry system.
It will link Manila Bay and Laguna Lake through Pasig River, improving connectivity and adding capacity to address the high transportation demand between eastern and northern areas of the Greater Capital Region.
In a presentation during the Norway-Philippines conference, Dayao said that based on the current draft feasibility study, project cost is estimated at P32.8 billion (about US$561 million). The project will be implemented in phases to ensure technical, financial, and institutional readiness.
Package 1 will cover Pasig and Marikina Rivers targeted for construction from 2027 to 2029, with start of operations by 2029. The sector will be serviced by 75 electric vessels.
Package 2, covering Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay, is scheduled for construction from 2033 to 2034, with operations beginning in 2035.
The ferry system will have four service components:
- Pasig River Ferry Service (PRFS) – comprising 21 ferry stations along Pasig River
- Marikina River Ferry Service (MRFS) – eight ferry stations and proposed routes along Marikina River
- Manila Bay Ferry Service (MBFS) – three ferry stations and proposed routes along Manila Bay
- Laguna de Bay Ferry Service (LBFS) – three ferry stations and proposed routes around Laguna de Bay
Based on the latest draft feasibility study, Dayao said MAPALLA is projected to service around 10,000 passengers daily in its first year of operations, and will gradually increase to over 30,000 passengers daily as services expand.
In its first year of operations, the daily demand projections for each service are as follows:
- PRFS – 10,753 daily passengers for the first phase, 31,481 daily passengers for the second phase
- MRFS – 3,132 daily passengers
- MBFS – 6,841 daily passengers
- LBFS – 1,364 daily passengers
– Roumina Pablo
