Following the tragic bus accident that killed 21 tourists in Cebu, Cebuanos asked Tuesday President-elect Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to quickly revive and build the first modern mass rail transit (MRT) system outside Metro Manila.

At the same time, Cebu Rep. Eduardo Gullas also requested Aquino to assemble a more aggressive team of economic and transport planners to be able to fulfill the proposed MRT system as well as a rapid bus transport system in Cebu City to reduce public vehicular accidents in the city.

“The system has become absolutely necessary to enable Cebu to keep pace with rapid population growth and economic expansion. The sooner the system is installed, the more economical for government, and the less costly for taxpayers as well as commuters," Gullas said.

“The two (MRT and Bus transportation) could be rolled out in a manner that they would complement and reinforce each other, rather than make one redundant," he pointed out.

Last Sunday, a bus filled with tourists plummeted down a ravine killing 21 Iranian medical interns and nursing students, who were supposed to have a trip down the beach, and injuring 30 other passengers.

The Cebu lawmaker has been pushing for the MRT project to ease Metro Cebu's heavy motor vehicle traffic congestion, pushing Gullas to introduce a bill seeking to require the Department of  Transportation and Communication (DoTC) to prepare and execute a plan to establish the system.

A former provincial governor, Gullas estimated that the government will be needing a budget of around P46 to P55 million to build the MRT project.

Earlier, DoTC previously forged a $1 billion build-operate-transfer agreement with the AMA Group of Holdings Corp. to build a 71-kilometer, three-phased MRT project in Metro Cebu, which was proposed to run through Metro Cebu from Carcar City in the south to Danao City in the north.

However, the project has been stalled because the DowwTC has found it difficult to get lower offers from other private entities.