The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has formally presented a proposed budget of PHP 300.96 billion under the Fiscal Year 2027 National Expenditure Program (NEP) to the House Committee on Appropriations.

The proposed allocation is 52.5% higher than the department’s PHP 197.33 billion budget proposal for FY 2026. Mass transit infrastructure remains the biggest focus of the spending plan. Capital Outlay accounts for PHP 243.93 billion, or about 81% of the DOTr’s total proposed budget.

Railways get the lion’s share

The railways sector is the biggest recipient of the proposed budget, with PHP 194.99 billion earmarked for six foreign-assisted infrastructure projects.

The North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) System gets the biggest individual allocation at PHP 123.84 billion. Next is Phase I of the Metro Manila Subway Project, which has a proposed PHP 40.73 billion allocation under the 2027 NEP.

Bike lanes budget slashed, road safety gets PHP 0

While rail projects continue to receive billions in funding, allocations for active transport and specific road safety programs took a sharp hit in the proposed 2027 budget.

The Active Transport Bike Share System and Safe Pathways program, which covers bicycle lanes and pedestrian pathways, has been allocated just PHP 34 million for 2027. That’s a 97% budget cut from the DOTr’s original agency proposal of PHP 1.13 billion.

Even more striking is the allocation for the Philippine Road Safety Action Plan (PRSAP) 2023–2028. The program received zero allocation under the FY 2027 NEP, despite the DOTr initially proposing PHP 111 million for it.

LTO seeks PHP 17 billion for operations, IT, muscle

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) does not have a separate line-item budget in the NEP, with its funding included under the Office of the Secretary (OSEC) baseline budget.

LTO leadership, however, confirmed that the agency is seeking a PHP 17 billion allocation for FY 2027. A major part of the request is expected to go toward the modernization of the Land Transportation Management System (LTMS).

LTO said the proposed funding will cover IT upgrades, including hardware replacement, maintenance, support services, and the establishment of a dedicated disaster recovery center for the system.

Personnel salaries and administrative overhead will consume another portion of the PHP 17 billion request. Beyond operational expenses, it stands to reason that a significant budget increase would also support LTO’s law enforcement to gain more muscle, potentially funding new personnel recruitment and equipment acquisitions to enhance road safety monitoring across the country.