The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has terminated the contract of BF Corp. and Foresight Development and Surveying Co. (BFC-FDSC), a company founded by the late Marikina Mayor Bayani Fernando, for the Unified Grand Central Station (Common Station) project, citing excessive construction delays of the project.
The issuance of notice of termination against BFC-FDSC Consortium, the contractor for the Common Station project, follows President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directives to speed up and finally complete the construction of the common station which has been ongoing since 2009 to ease and reduce travel time for commuters.
Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon said the Common Station, aimed to link the LRT-1, MRT-3 and MRT-7, could have already benefited commuters if not for the construction delay.
“Now that we have terminated the contract with BF Corp. and Foresight Development and Surveying Co, we can finally move on with the construction. And the next step is to expedite its construction so that commuters can benefit from it because it is a big deal for them,” Dizon said.
Dizon expressed optimism that the construction for the transit train hub could restart immediately to fast track the process through the New Government Procurement Act or the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Code.
The P2.8 billion Common Station features a 13,700-square meter concourse area which will seamlessly interconnect the rail lines of LRT-1, MRT-3, MRT-7, and the much-awaited Metro Manila Subway.
The Common Station project has been stalled since 2009 but former Transport Secretary Arthur Tugade settled the dispute on the location leading to its groundbreaking in September 2017.
Once operational, the Common Station is expected to serve about 478,000 passengers daily.