The Transportation Department said Monday it will hold the bidding for the operation and maintenance of Light Rail Transit Line 2 in December and award the contract in January next year.
“Since bid submission date is scheduled for December this year, award should be within January,” Transportation Department spokesman Michael Arthur Sagal said.
Sagcal said he expected the signing of the contract in February next year.
The agency earlier shortlisted Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. and SMRT Transport Solutions Consortium; D.M. Consunji Inc. and Tokyo Metro Co. Ltd. Consortium; Light Rail Manila Holdings 2 Inc. Consortium of Ayala Corp., Metro Pacific Investments Corp., RATP TRANSDEV Asia and RATPDevelopment SA; and San Miguel Holdings Corp. and Korea Railroad Corp. Consortium for the LRT operations and maintenance project under the public-private partnership scheme.
The contract will last for 10 to 15 years, with the winning bidder given the right to maintain the existing 11 stations and the 4.2-kilometer Masinag extension. The government earlier awarded the construction of LRT 2 Masinag extension to DMCI for P2.27 billion.
LRT 2 east extension project involves adding 4.2 kilometers to the railway from the existing Santolan station at Marcos Highway, Pasig City, all the way to the intersection of Marcos and Sumulong highways in Masinag, Antipolo.
The board of the National Economic and Development Authority also approved the west extension of the existing Light Rail Transit Line 2 to Port Area, Manila.
The P10.12-billion LRT Line 2 west extension project involves the design and extension of the existing Line 2, from Recto station to Pier 4.
The west extension will have a total length of 3.02 kilometers and add three stations, including Tutuban (located next to the Cluster Mall); Divisoria (west of Recto Avenue and Asuncion Street intersection) and Pier 4 (located 50 meters north of Zaragoza Street).
The west extension of LRT 2 will be locally funded and implemented in three and a half years.