Latest news with #North-SouthCommuterRailwayProject
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GMA Network
07-08-2025
- Politics
- GMA Network
DOTr eyes busway stations in Cubao, PITX in 2026
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) aims to construct busway stations in Cubao in Quezon City and the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange in 2026 as part of its ''commuter-centric'' initiatives. According to Joseph Morong's report on '24 Oras' on Thursday, the establishment of two new busway stations is on top of the rehabilitation of the existing busway stations—Monumento, Bagong Barrio, North Avenue, and Guadalupe. 'Kaya nga pinili natin yun as two new stations kasi nga madaming sumasakay,' said Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon. (That's precisely why we chose those as the two new stations because there are many commuters.) The DOTr said that some 250,000 commuters benefit from the busway stations daily. 'Tama na yung pagiging car-centric natin sa pag-iisip natin sa transport infrastructure, kailangan maging commuter-centric naman tayo,' said Dizon. (It's time to move beyond our car-centric thinking in transport infrastructure; we need to become commuter-centric.) 'Yung access ng PWD, yung kababaihan, mga bata po, mga buntis, senior citizen, although yung iba pong istasyon mayroong elevator at escalator, yung iba po kasi maliit, tingnan po natin, ipinapaubaya ko po sa mga eksperto kung ano po ang magandang solusyon,' said Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Amenah Pangandaman. (Regarding the access for PWDs, women, children, pregnant individuals, and senior citizens, although some stations have elevators and escalators, others are still small. Let's see, I'm leaving it to the experts to find the best solution.) The government will also replace the controversial high overpass in Kamuning, Quezon City. The DOTr's budget was slashed by P100 billion this year, which, according to the government, has delayed the progress of major infrastructure projects like the Metro Manila Subway and the North-South Commuter Railway Project. A portion of the budget for these projects has been loaned from other countries, according to the report. The DBM explained that the P100 billion was reallocated by the Congress for other projects. 'Naka-pool yung lahat ng binawas, and then ilalagay nila sa mga programs and departments na priority nila during that time,' said Pangandaman. (All the budget cuts were pooled, and then they'll allocate it to the programs and departments that are their priority during that time.) The budget for the EDSA busway rehabilitation was sourced from the continuing appropriations, or the funds that were not utilized last year. The DOTr has a proposed budget of P200 billion for next year. Both the DOTr and the DBM are hoping there will be no significant reduction from the proposed amount, as the government is also working to improve active transport infrastructure such as the elevated bike lanes and parking areas for public utility vehicles in Quezon City. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/VBL, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
16-07-2025
- Business
- GMA Network
Marcos OKs privatization of North-South Commuter Railway ops
The government's plan to privatize the operations and maintenance (O&M) of the big-ticket North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project, which is now under construction, has been approved by the President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. The President-chaired Economic Development Council (formerly the National Economic and Development Authority Board) has approved, during its meeting on July 15, the O&M of NSCR under a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement. In February 2023, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) announced it is intending to hand over the O&M of NSCR along with the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP) to the private sector through competitive bidding. The total estimated cost of the O&M contract is P229.32 billion, according to the Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev). The entire NSCR is a 147.26-kilometer elevated railway line aimed at easing travel across three regions in Luzon, namely Central Luzon, Metro Manila, and CALABARZON. The project is already in advanced stages of construction with pre-operations expected to begin in March 2026 until July 2027. The DEPDev said the concession period for partial operations of NSCR Phase 1 —from Clark International Airport (CIA) to Valenzuela involving 13 stations— is targeted to commence in December 2027 until September 2028. Meanwhile, the concession period for the partial operations of Phase 2 —from Nichols with additional segments from Alabang to Calamba involving 32 stations— will run from October 2028 until December 2031. Full operations are expected to begin in January 2032, it said. 1M commuters The railway project is expected to benefit as many as 800,000 passengers daily in its opening year, eventually serving up to one million commuters, the Economic Planning Department said. NSCR will feature 35 stations, including 31 elevated, three at-grade, and one underground. Its depots will be located in Clark, Valenzuela, and Calamba to support maintenance and operations. The railway project is planned to offer two types of train services —commuter trains, with 51 train-sets each capable of carrying 2,242 passengers and 'Limited Express' trains with seven train-sets accommodating 386 passengers each. The two train services are planned to have travel speeds of 120 to 130 kilometers per hour, reducing travel time from Clark to Calamba to around three hours via commuter service from four hours, while the limited express service will cut travel time from Clark to Alabang to around two hours. 'The North-South Commuter Railway Project is a major step toward faster, greener, and more connected transportation for Filipinos as the system will also be integrated with the Metro Manila Subway. At the same time, it will promote green and commercial development along its corridors,' said DEPDev Secretary and ED Council vice chairperson Arsenio Balisacan. The ED Council also tackled the midterm update of the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028. The midterm update of the PDP 2023-2028 refines and recalibrates the country's key policies, strategies, programs, and legislative priorities to ensure alignment with evolving economic conditions and development goals, according to the DEPDev. The DEPDev said it spearheads the updating process of the Plan at the midpoint of each administration to assess progress and make necessary adjustments to targets and interventions. 'We have learned a lot of lessons from our past experiences and many of these have been reflected in our recent efforts. We will continue to stay on our course to sustain our momentum for the second half of this administration,' said Balisacan. Following the discussions from the Council meeting, DEPDev will be receiving comments from various agencies to finalize the updated Plan, which will be released to the public by the end of July 2025. —VAL, GMA Integrated News
