The Department of Transportation (DOTr; ) is the

executive department The executive branch is the part of government which executes or enforces the law. Function The scope of executive power varies greatly depending on the political context in which it emerges, and it can change over time in a given country. In ...

of the

Philippine government The government of the Philippines () has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and democratic constitutional repub ...

responsible for the maintenance and expansion of viable, efficient, and dependable transportation systems as effective instruments for national recovery and economic progress. It is responsible for the country's land, air, and sea communications infrastructure. Until June 30, 2016, the department was named ''Department of Transportation and Communications'' (''DOTC''; ). With Republic Act No. 10844 or "An Act Creating the Department of Information and Communications Technology", signed into law on May 20, 2016, during the administration of President Benigno Aquino III, the Information and Communications Technology Office was spun off the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and merged with all operative units of the DOTC dealing with communications, to form the new Department of Information and Communications Technology.

History

From 1899 to 1979, all transportation activities were integrated into the structure and activities of what is now the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Early history

On July 28, 1979, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC), headed by Minister José P. Dans Jr., was formally created pursuant to Executive Order No. 546. Under this Executive Order, the Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communications (MPWTC) was divided into two separate ministries: The Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) and the Ministry of Public Works and Highways (MPWH). The MOTC became the primary policy, planning, programming, coordinating, implementing and administrative entity of the executive branch of the government in the promotion, development and regulation of a dependable and coordinated network of transportation and communication systems. The infrastructure projects undertaken during this period included: * Light Rail Transit System *Computer-Controlled Traffic Lights System *Manila International Airport, renamed to

Ninoy Aquino International Airport Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA ; ; ), also known as Manila International Airport (MIA), is the main international airport serving Metro Manila in the Philippines. Located between the cities of Pasay and Parañaque, about south of ...

*Central Post Offices in

Makati Makati ( ; ), officially the City of Makati (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines, known for being one of the leading financial centers in the country. As of 2013, the city has the highest concent ...

Caloocan Caloocan, officially the City of Caloocan (; ), is a highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,661,584 people making it the fourth-most populous city in the Philippines. Caloo ...

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

, and San Juan It was also during this period that the motor vehicle registration and control was improved with the introduction of permanent vehicle license plates and the staggered registration system. A bus leasing program provided an additional 1,000 new buses in Metro Manila. The operations of both the Philippine National Railways and the Metro Manila Transit Corporation were improved and expanded. At the same time, the Manila South Line of the PNR serving the

Bicol Region The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...

was rehabilitated.

Post-1986

On February 26, 1986, just after the 1986 EDSA Revolution, former Batangas assemblyman Hernando Perez was appointed Minister of Transportation and Communication by President Corazon C. Aquino. In March 1987, technocrat Rainerio O. Reyes, was appointed Minister of MOTC. Immediately after, the MOTC was reorganized pursuant to Executive Order Nos. 125, and 125-A. With these Executive Orders, the MOTC was made into a department, under the Executive branch of the Government. Under Secretary Reyes, the quasi-judicial functions of the department were transferred to the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, which was created through Executive Order No. 202.

Under Fidel V. Ramos

Jesus B. Garcia was appointed Secretary of the DOTC by President Fidel V. Ramos. Under Garcia, new entrants were allowed in the landline and

cellular phone A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones ( landline phones). This radi ...

services, and dilapidated taxi cabs were also phased out in favor of brand new and late model units. In early 1995, Senator Ernesto Maceda ranked the DOTC first in his "Flagship Centers of Corruption and Inefficiency" scorecard for 1994 out of all the government agencies, citing its alleged irregular transactions for projects related to telecommunication. Maceda previously ranked it second for the year 1993.

Present

By 2016, the foundation of the Department of Information and Communications Technology caused the DOTC to become simply the Department of Transportation (DOTr) as the DICT transferred the DOTC's communications agencies to it. In July 2017, the Agency began transferring its main operations from its longtime headquarters at Columbia Tower in

Mandaluyong Mandaluyong ( ; ), officially the City of Mandaluyong (, ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly-urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popula ...

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila ( ), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; ), is the capital region and largest List of metropolitan areas in the Philippines, metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located ...

to Clark Freeport and Special Economic Zone in Mabalacat, Pampanga. However, as of 2022, the move was planned to be reversed as a result of a survey conducted among DOTr employees. The department still owns office spaces at the Columbia Tower, while the Office of the Secretary is currently located in the head office of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines in

Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 Philippine census, 2020 census, it has a ...

. During the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945) is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the first Philippine president from Mindanao, and is the oldest person to assum ...

, DOTr pursued numerous transportation projects as part of the Build! Build! Build! infrastructure program of the government, with worth of public infrastructure projects being rolled out from 2018 to 2022. The program was later superseded by the Build Better More under the presidency of Duterte's successor,

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. (, , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials BBM or PBBM, is a Filipino politician who has served as the 17th president of the Philippines since 2022. He is the second child ...

Ongoing projects

Railways

Metro Manila Subway

The Metro Manila Subway, originally named Mega Manila Subway, is an approved underground

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

line to be built initially in

in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. The subway project was fast-tracked with the announcement on February 5, 2021, that 25 tunnel boring machines will be used for the subway's construction. Planned partial operations of the subway was revised to sometime between December 2021 and February 2022. On April 27, 2021, the Department of Transportation announced that the underground works for the subway will start in the 4th quarter of 2021.

PNR North-South Commuter Railway

The North–South Commuter Railway is an under-construction

commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...

from New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac to

Calamba, Laguna Calamba, officially the City of Calamba (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Laguna (province), Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popu ...

. The North Line will have a length of 106-kilometer, from Tutuban in Manila to New Clark City, and is expected to be completed by 2021. The South Line will be reconstructed as an electrified standard-gauge full double-track line. Pre-construction work such as clearing of the right of way had been started in January 2018. Construction commenced in February 2019.

Organizational structure

The department is headed by the Secretary of Transportation, with the following nine undersecretaries and ten assistant secretaries *Undersecretary/Chief of Staff, Office of the Secretary *Undersecretary for Administration and Finance *Undersecretary for Aviation and Airports *Undersecretary for Legal Affairs *Undersecretary for Maritime *Undersecretary for Planning and Project Development *Undersecretary for Railways *Undersecretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure *Undersecretary/Head of Philippine Railway Institute *Assistant Secretary for Planning and Project Development *Assistant Secretary for Finance and Comptrollership *Assistant Secretary for Road Transport and Infrastructure *Assistant Secretary for Administration and Procurement *Assistant Secretary for Aviation and Airports *Assistant Secretary for Communications and Commuter Affairs *Assistant Secretary for Internal Audit and Special Concerns *Assistant Secretary for Maritime *Assistant Secretary for Railways *Assistant Secretary/Chief of Land Transportation Office

Attached agencies

Land (Road)

* Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) * Land Transportation Office (LTO) * Toll Regulatory Board (TRB)

Rail

* Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) * Metro Rail Transit Corporation (MRTC) - not under the government, but supervised by the DOTr * Philippine National Railways (PNR) * Philippine Railways Institute (PRI)

Air

* Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) * Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) * Clark International Airport Corporation (CIAC) * Davao International Airport Authority (DIAA) * Mactan–Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) * Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA)

Sea

* Cebu Port Authority (CPA) * Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) * Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) * Philippine Merchant Marine Academy (PMMA) * Philippine Ports Authority (PPA)

Miscellaneous

* Office for Transportation Security (OTS) * Office of Transportation Cooperatives (OTC)

Secretaries of Transportation

References

External links

Department of Transportation official website
{{authority control Philippines, Transportation 1979 establishments in the Philippines

Transportation Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...