Commuters experienced another glitch on Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3) after a southbound train stalled before reaching Cubao station Thursday morning.
The glitch prompted the MRT management to operate half-line trips, carrying passengers only from Shaw Boulevard station in Mandaluyong City and Taft Avenue station in Pasay City for about two hours.
The train stopped around 6:15 a.m. between Kamuning and Cubao stations because of track brakes malfunction, MRT general manager Roman Buenafe said.
Because of the disruption, irate passengers going south, who endured long lines at the North Avenue station for more than one hour, were forced to take other means of transportation to reach their destination.
Some passengers going to North Avenue had to rush to get a refund of their tickets at the Guadalupe station in Makati City after learning that the trips would be until the Shaw Boulevard Station only.
The MRT resumed normal operation after two hours.
The half-line limit operation (from North Avenue to Shaw Boulevard) also happened in August 2014 because of the flooded underground tracks between Ayala and Buendia stations.
Last week, thousands of commuters were stranded and endured long lines at several MRT stations for almost an hour when six trains had to stop on their tracks due to an air-conditioning malfunction.
About 10,000 passengers were affected by the said glitches that happened on April 21.
The Senate wants to find solution to numerous problems confronting the MRT-3, which officials said, was serving more than half a million passengers or more than its capacity of 350,000 per day.
MRT trains and railways are vulnerable to breakdown which causes injuries, delays and long lines due to inadequate preventive maintenance, absence of regular inspection, lack of spare parts replacement and readiness in times of accidents and risks.
The MRT-3 line started in 1999 with 13 stations commences at North Avenue and ends at Taft Avenue, serving the cities that Epifanio de los Santos Avenue passes through: Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Makati, and Pasay.
The country’s second rapid transit line in Metro Manila forms part of the rail transport infrastructure, including the Manila Light Rail Transit System composed two lines which are the LRT-1 and MRT-2, and the Metro Commuter Line of the Philippine National Railways.