The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said it is set to bid out the operations and maintenance (O&M) of the MRT Line 3 next year as the government now owns the system’s assets.
DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon confirmed that the MRT3 system’s assets are now wholly owned by the government.
The LRTS Phase 1, which includes the depot, stations, Light Rail Vehicles, and all ancillary plant, equipment, and facilities, was turned over to the DOTr on July 15, 2025 pursuant to the build-lease-transfer (BLT) agreement between the government and Metro Rail Transit Corp. for MRT3
“The plan is to have it become a PPP to improve operations including advertising rights,” Dizon said.
“It should be a PPP at the latest next year,” he added.
Before the transfer of assets, the government operated the MRT3. At the same time, the MRTC, owned by Metro Rail Transit Holdings II Inc., led by businessman Robert John Sobrepeña, is responsible for the design and construction of the EDSA rail transit system.
Formed in 1995, MRTC started building MRT 3 in October 1996, completed it in December 1999, and began full operations in July 2020.
MRTC and the government, through the Department of Transportation and Communications, signed the BLT agreement in 1997 to construct and maintain MRT 3.
MRTC financed the construction of the modern rail system stretching along EDSA’s 10.5-meter median from North Ave. in Quezon City to Taft Avenue in Pasay City. The company infused P4.49 billion worth of equity into the project.
The train system is designed to carry in excess of 23,000 passengers per hour per direction, initially, and is expandable to accommodate 48,000 passengers per hour per direction.
The DOTr recently extended its contract with Sumitomo Corp. for the rehabilitation and maintenance of the MRT-3 for an additional year. In May 2023, the DOTr, Sumitomo, and Oriental Consultants Global signed an extended P7.38-billion contract for the line’s maintenance until July 2025.
The scope of this new contract was expanded to include extending the rail lines, installing signals for the common station shared with other lines, and developing the pocket track. This last improvement is necessary to increase the number of railcars per train from three to four, in addition to the regular maintenance of the main line.
