SEVERAL members of the House of Representatives on Wednesday expressed their opposition to the proposed construction of a common station to connect three main railways between two malls in Quezon City.
Quezon City Rep. Winston Castelo, House committee on Metro Manila development chairman and Deputy Majority Speaker Danilo Suarez, branded the new site for a common station of the Light Rail Transit and Metro Rail Transit line 3 as very “uncommon.”
The two were earlier joined by Buhay Rep. Joselito Atienza, Kabayan Rep. Harry Roque and Bagong Henerasyon Rep. Bernadette Herrera Dy in inspecting the area to determine if Congress should approve the billions of pesos needed for the project construction.
According to Roque, the location would only favor the business interests of the two malls located within North Avenue.
Atienza also opposed the project’s site.
Other lawmakers, however, backed the plan to revert the 2009 location of the common station in front of SM North Edsa.
The construction of the common station is slated to start in December, after the government and the private builders finally signed a memorandum of agreement last Jan. 18.
The MRT-LRT common station, which will cost P2.8 billion, is a 13,700-square meter project to be built between SM North Edsa and TriNoma malls in Quezon City. It will connect the LRT1, the MRT3, and also the MRT7, which is targeted for completion in 2020.
The common station’s target completion date is 2019.
The Department of Transportation said among its benefits include the “seamless transfer from one line to another, convenient walk for platform transfers, a bigger space, and connection to two major malls” SM North Edsa and TriNoma.