The Department of Transportation expects to start the construction of the 56-kilometer, P344.6-billion PNR Calamba line next year that will generate more than 10,000 direct jobs.
Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the project would provide employment opportunities not only for residents of Calamba but also from nearby municipalities.
He said employees and students would benefit from the operation of the PNR Calamba project which would significantly cut travel time between Metro Manila and Laguna, enabling them to spend more time with their families.
Tugade said the completion of the project would also boost local and regional economic development.
“If we are going to complete this, this would lift the economy of Calamba. Remember, this is a historical site. Imagine the benefits it would generate for tourism,” Tugade said.
One of the flagship projects of the “Build, Build, Build” program of the Duterte administration, PNR Calamba is the third leg of the massive North-South Commuter Railway project. It will connect Metro Manila (Solis St., Tondo) and Calamba, Laguna and reduce travel time from four hours to just one hour.
The 56-kilometer railway project is expected to serve at least 340,000 passengers a day during its partial operations. Ridership is expected to increase up to 550,000 passengers once the railway is on full operation by 2028.
Funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Asian Development Bank, PNR Calamba’s 19 stations are located across five cities in Metro Manila and six cities in Laguna.
It will connect to the first two sections of the North-South Commuter Railway. Phase 1 of the NSCR pProject is the construction of the P149.13-billion Malolos to Tutuban commuter railway that will be seamlessly integrated to the P283-8 billion PNR Clark Phase 2.
PNR Clark Phase 2 is a 54-kilometer rail line, which will connect Malolos, Bulacan and Clark, Pampanga.
The project will also feature the country’s first-ever Airport Express, which is expected to reduce travel time from Clark International Airport in Pampanga to Makati City to about an hour.
The PNR Clark Phase 1 segment of NSCR, or the Tutuban-Malolos line, was scheduled to be partially operational by December 2021. It will be followed by the PNR Clark Phase 2 project, a 53-km northern segment.
The DOTR earlier announced plans to launch bidding for the operations and maintenance contracts for the Metro Manila Subway Project and North South Commuter Railway System.
DOTR Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John Batan said the agency was expecting an approval from the National Economic and Development Authority to bid out the O&M for the two projects by the third quarter of 2021.
Dubbed as the “Project of the Century,” the P355-billion Metro Manila Subway is expected to serve 370,000 passengers daily in its first year of full operations.