The Department of Transportation (DOTr) aims to complete big-ticket infrastructure projects before the end of the Marcos administration in 2028, despite facing implementation challenges.
DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista said the agency has 69 transport infrastructure projects out of the 186 approved by the National Economic and Development Authority.
Bautista identified the North-South Commuter Railway, Metro Manila Subway, Metro Rail Transit (MRT) 4, MRT 7, LRT Line 1 Cavite Extension Project, PNR South Long Haul, Cebu International Container Port, New Cebu International Container Port and New Dumaguete Airport as among the agency’s top priorities.
The transport chief expects the North-South Commuter Railway to be partially operational by the end of 2028.
A flagship project under the Build Better More Program, the NSCR is a mega railway network spanning 148 kilometers, with 37 stations and 464 train cars and encompassing three segments—the PNR Clark Phase 1 (Tutuban-Malolos), PNR Clark Phase 2 (Malolos-Clark) and PNR Calamba (Solis-Calamba).
The mass transport project, which stretches across 26 cities and municipalities within the three regions of Central Luzon, National Capital Region and CALABARZON, is expected to serve over a million passengers daily.
It is also envisioned to enhance connectivity and mobility and provide the commuting public with long-lasting comfort and convenience.
The project aims to reduce travel time between Clark, Pampanga and Calamba, Laguna to two hours and service over 800,000 passengers daily once operational.
The Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP), however, is expected to become fully operational by end of 2029.
The MMSP is the first underground railway system in the Philippines and a flagship project under the “Build, Better, More” program of the Marcos Administration.
Spanning 33 kilometers across eight local governments units in Metro Manila and passing through three central business districts, the MMSP is an expansive system that will be interconnected with LRT-1, MRT-3 and MRT-7 at the Common Station, LRT-2 at Anonas Station and a physical run through into the NSCR-EX at FTI and Bicutan Stations
While acknowledging challenges including right-of-way acquisition, securing adequate funding, relocating affected communities, managing utility relocations and addressing property registration issues, Bautista said the agency is actively working to overcome these obstacles.
He said one of the biggest problems is the issue of “right-of-way” (ROW). The agency presented solutions to the Cabinet to ensure that all projects would be implemented before the President’s term ends.
“We are working to keep the project on track,” he said.
Bautista said the government formed an inter-agency committee under Administrative Order No. 19 issued by the President last year. The body is called the Inter-Agency Committee for ROW Activities for National Railway Projects.
This is composed of DOTr, Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Department of Finance (DOF), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Solicitor General.
Most of the projects being implemented started during the previous administrations when issues already existed and needed resolutions.