The Department of Transportation said it expects to start by next month the construction of the P2.8-billion common station for LRT Line 1, MRT3, MRT 7 and Metro Manila Subway Project.
“We will finish it in 2.5 years to 3 years for the convenience and reliability of transportation,” Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said during the groundbreaking ceremony of the Common Station Project.
The Common Station will connect the four main lines in Metro Manila: MRT-3, LRT-1, MRT-7, and the soon to be constructed Metro Manila Subway.
At 13,700 square meters, the Common Station will have a spacious concourse area that will facilitate seamless transfer of passengers from one line to another. It will be built between SM North EDSA and Trinoma. The design also ensures a defined level of service by all parties, convenient walk in the platform, bigger space and connection between two major malls.
The Common Station is expected to serve approximately 478,000 passengers daily by 2020.
The private shareholders—SM Prime Holdings Inc., Ayala Land Inc., San Miguel Corp., and Light Rail Manila Corp.—were all represented in the groundbreaking ceremony.
Each made a commitment to follow timelines and deliver the Common Station on schedule.
Rogelio Singson, president and chief executive of LRMC, said the project was a “game changer” for mass transport in Metro Manila and that the location was ideal for the passengers of LRT Line 1.
“The Common Station will provide safety and convenience to hundreds of thousands of passengers. We are glad to be a step closer to completion and we promise to go full blast with construction,” Bobby Dy, president and chief executive of ALI said.
“We have been waiting for this for so long. We will make sure we will follow timelines,” San Miguel representative Manuel Bonoan said.
The common station project started in 2009 and was put on hold due to legal issues. The Light Rail Transit Authority signed a deal with SMPrime to build the station near SM North EDSA.
Five years later, the Transportation Department decided to build the station near Ayala’s Trinoma citing reasons to cut costs.
The court intervened and issued a temporary restraining order in favor of SM Prime to stop the construction of the project.
But in January this year, the government and private shareholders signed an agreement to build the common station for LRT, MRT3 and MRT7.
The project will also deliver dual tracks for LRT-1, MRT-3 and MRT-7 for increased operational efficiency. The ground level of the Common Station will serve road-based PUVs for intermodal interoperability. This will allow not only seamless railway-to-railway transfers, but also seamless railway-to-bus-to-jeep-to-AUV transfers.