The road train was designed to only carry 240 passengers at one time but he said they estimated that around 1,800 passengers would be accommodated for every trip in the entire route.
Since the HERT is still on trial run, he said the passengers were pre-selected by the DOST and the local government.
The official said they had conducted the pre-registration of passengers in barangays covered by the route.
“The entire test run is subsidized by the DOST so the rides would be free for all passengers,” he said.
Citing the local government agreement with the DOST, Lagare said the road train’s trial period will initially run until Dec.[]
31.
But he said the agency has already sought the release of additional budget to extend the test run to another six months.
The city government and the DOST had signed a contract of commodatum for the use of the HERT.
Commodatum is a “gratuitous contract” that allows a certain party to loan specific chattels for use, with the obligation to return them after an agreed period.
The HERT, which was developed by DOST’s Metals Industry Research and Development Center, is a “40-meter long train-like bus” that can run at a maximum speed of 50 kilometers per hour and is powered by hybrid diesel fuel and electric-powered battery.[]
