Metro Rail Transit Line 3 on Wednesday reported serving 129.03 million passengers last year, higher by 30 percent from only 98.33 million passengers in 2022.
Transport assistant secretary for railways and MRT-3 officer-in-charge Jorjette B. Aquino traced the rise in ridership to the rail line’s enhanced reliability and effective maintenance program, alongside the increased return of more passengers to on-site work.
“The MRT-3 served as a reliable partner to more commuters who returned to on-site work in 2023, and needed a fast and dependable mode of transport. The continued effective maintenance and upkeep of MRT-3’s rehabilitated subsystems contributed to the improved reliability and efficiency of the rail line. Our trains now receive necessary preventive maintenance and upkeep on time, while other subsystems such as tracks, signaling, and power are also properly maintained,” Aquino said.
According to her, these enhancements translated to improvements in MRT-3 operations. Travel time is now only 30 to 45 minutes from North Avenue Station to Taft Avenue Station and that headway is as low as 3.5 to 4 minutes during peak hours with 18 train sets operating.
MRT-3 completed a massive rehabilitation in December 2021, which restored its operating speed from 30 kph to the original 60 kph. The rehabilitation was carried out by MRT-3’s original builder and maintenance provider, Sumitomo-MHI-TESP.
In May last year, the Department of Transportation extended MRT-3’s maintenance and rehabilitation contract with Sumitomo that allowed for the sustained system upkeep until 2025.
Average daily ridership also increased by more than 30 percent in 2023 to 357,198 from previous year’s 273,141.
It was noted the MRT-3 posted the highest single-day ridership on 22 August last year with total 450,298 passengers.
Meanwhile, a total of 220,706 passengers benefitted from MRT-3’s free ride programs for the year 2023.
