DOTr eyes 5 stations of Mega Manila Subway operational by 2022

The Mega Manila Subway System is expected to reduce travel time from Quezon City to Taguig to just 31 minutes from the present one and a half hours, serving around 370,000 passengers daily in its opening year. (Photo from www.build.gov.ph/PNA)

MANILA, Aug. 11— The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is eyeing to operate five stations of the proposed Mega Manila Subway System by the end of the Duterte administration in 2022.

DOTr Undersecretary for Railways Cesar Chavez said the department is coordinating with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the speedy implementation of the subway project.

“DOTr Secretary Tugade is negotiating with JICA that the implementation schedule will be expedited without sacrificing quality and good governance,” Chavez said during the Dutertenomics forum held Thursday afternoon at the Fairmont Hotel in Makati City.

President Rodrigo Duterte and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are set to sign in November an agreement that will pave the way for the construction of the Mega Manila Subway Project.

Japan has committed to provide USD4 billion for the construction of the Mega Manila Subway System, which is seen to further ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila and provide an alternative mode of transportation to commuters.

The subway system is envisioned to be an underground mass transportation system connecting major business districts and government centers which is expected to serve 370,000 passengers daily in its opening year.

It will have stations from Mindanao Avenue to FTI-Taguig which is expected to reduce travel time from Quezon City to Taguig to just 31 minutes from the present one and a half hours.

These stations are Mindanao Avenue, North Avenue, Quezon Avenue, East Avenue, Anonas, Katipunan, Ortigas North, Ortigas South, Kalayaan Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Cayetano Boulevard and Food Terminal Incorporated.

Earlier, Tugade proposed that the subway system be extended all the way to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) to help promote ease of mobility for passengers going to and from the airport.

The construction of the Mega Manila Subway Project is set to start by the fourth quarter of 2019 and expected to be completed by 2024.