The Metro Manila Subway project, which has dug some five kilometers of the tunnel thus far, projects partially opening a portion of the 33-kilometer line from Valenzuela City to North Avenue in Quezon City in 2028, the Department of Transportation said over the weekend.
Transport Secretary Jaime J. Bautista said the partial operations will extend to Ortigas in Pasig City the following year. Construction progress of the country’s first subway is 15.57 percent done, he said.
The Metro Manila Subway will cut across eight cities from Valenzuela City to FTI-Bicutan in Parañaque City but with a spur line to NAIA Terminal 3 in Pasay City.
The 17-station rail line will cut travel time between Quezon City and Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City from one hour and 10 minutes at present to only 35 minutes. Once operational, the underground rail can service up to 370,000 passengers daily.
Also, DOTr said the viaducts between the Bocaue and Balagtas stations of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project were connected last Friday. The viaduct span connection relates to NSCR Contract Package 01 that covers the Malolos-Tutuban segment’s elevated structures with six stations and one depot.
Contract Package 02 includes elevated structures with three stations all in Bulacan.
Overall progress of the NSCR is 51.46 percent complete with construction progress at 23.5 percent.
Once the NSCR is completed, the rail line will improve connectivity and mobility between Bulacan and Metro Manila.
“The NSCR would usher in a railway renaissance, reviving the once trailblazing rail industry in the Philippines,” Bautista said.
The 147-kilometer rail line will connect key cities in Pampanga, Bulacan, Metro Manila, and Laguna, reducing end-to-end travel time between Clark International Airport in Pampanga and Calamba, Laguna from four hours by road to less than two hours by train.
The NSCR System is expected to service 800,000 passengers daily.
