Light Rail Manila Corp., a consortium led by Ayala Corp. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp., said Friday it invested P8.7 billion to rehabilitate and improve the existing LRT Line 1 system.
LRMC, which took over LRT 1 in September 2015, said it served around 500,000 passengers daily and increased trips per day to 520 from 478 trips a day in 2016.
Headway was further reduced from six minutes to four minutes in 2016 to 3.5 minutes in 2018.
“We work very hard to provide safe, reliable, efficient and comfortable journey for commuters,” LRMC president and chief executive Juan Alfonso said.
LRMC said it was steadfast in improving the commuting experience of LRT-1 passengers. In January 2018, it completed the replacement of old rails that were exposed to rail contact fatigue such as shelling and corrugations.
The 20-kilometer rail replacement from Roosevelt to Baclaran stations aimed to extend rail and track component life and reduce wear on rolling stock to help increase train speeds.
“With the new rails, commuters will enjoy a smoother ride and that means improving the quality of their riding experience in LRT-1,” Alfonso said.
With 35 years of daily operations, multiple sections of LRT-1 suffered from cracked concrete and exposed or damaged rebars. River bridges also deteriorated.
Today, the existing 20-kilometer LRT-1 line runs with stronger parapets, putting to rest the questions on the structural integrity of the three-decade-old public utility.
Concrete repairs, sandblasting to remove corrosion, repainting, installation of new collision dampers to protect bridges from ship collision were done to complete the structural defect restoration works.
LRMC is also eyeing to complete the new signaling system for LRT-1 line by November 2020.
With the new signaling system, the train service schedule will improve. It will also help improve passenger service by ensuring that trains arrive regularly and on-time.
“The new signaling system is what will also give us a further reduced headway of 2.5 minutes in the existing LRT-1 line and soon, the first phase of the Cavite extension. We have automated many systems, and we will continue to invest and innovate to make processes more efficient and modern,” Alfonso said.
