Japanese railway engineers conduct audit on MRT-3

The initial batch of spare parts which were procured last December were scheduled to be delivered and installed this month (PNA Photo)

MANILA — A team of more than 50 Japanese railway engineers and experts will start Thursday its system audit of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) to determine the necessary rehabilitation and restoration works for the railway system.

This initiative comes in preparation for the mobilization of a rehabilitation and maintenance provider from Japan in May.

“We obviously need all the help we can get and we are very grateful that the Japanese Government answered our call for assistance to rehabilitate and restore the MRT-3 system,” Department of Transportation (DOTr) OIC Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John ‘TJ’ Batan said in a statement.

The system audit of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is separate from the ongoing Independent Audit and Assessment (IAA) TUV Rheinland on the reliability of the 48 train cars from CCRC Dalian as well as other components of the MRT system which commenced last January.

A special Bids and Awards Committee for the MRT-3 was also created to expedite the procurement of spare parts which were important on increasing the number of trains that would be deployed to the system.

The initial batch of spare parts which were procured last December were scheduled to be delivered and installed this month.

The DOTr is currently implementing a four-point strategy to rehabilitate and restore the MRT-3 system promoting accountability with the termination of Busan Universal Rail Inc. (BURI), ensuring continued service delivery by establishing the Maintenance Transition Team (MTT) and purchasing needed spare parts, contracting a rehabilitation and maintenance service provider together with an ODA partner, and putting in place a long-term maintenance and operator provider for MRT 3.