The groundbreaking for the Metro Manila subway is set for December, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade said on Wednesday.
“‘Yung date, napagkasunduan na po namin yan, talagang gusto ho naming mag-groundbreaking sa Disyembre. Ito ho yung target namin (That’s the date we’ve agreed upon. We really wanted that to push through. That’s our target),” Tugade said in a press conference.
However, it may be moved to January if the government’s plans will not push through.
“Mayron ho kaming iniisip na gagawin dito sa groundreaking. Kung hindi mangyayari yung iniisip naming gagawin gaya nung pagdala ng mga tinatawag na foreign machine, baka ipagpaliban namin yan hanggang Enero,” he said.
(We have plans for the groundbreaking. If the foreign machine will not make it to the date, we may postpone it to January.)
Construction was also set for 2019. So even if the groundbreaking happens in December or January, the government is still ahead of its 2020 timeline.
The DOTr said the first three stations — North Avenue, Mindanao Avenue, and Tandang Sora — will partially be operational by 2022.
Transportation Undersecretary Timothy John Batan said the contractor for the Metro Manila subway will be awarded by November. The loan agreement for the project was signed last March.
Simultaneously, the construction of the first Philippine Railway Institute will also be inaugurated in December. Tugade said the institute will provide training for operations and maintenance of the subway.
“Lagi ko hong sinasabi ‘yung insittute na ito pagkat kailangan ho yung tugma at akmang training para makapag-operate ng tren. From customer service, to maintenance, to engineering cooperation, dadaan ho sa railway institute na yun,” he said.
(I’ve always said this: the institute will provide training to properly operate the train — from customer service to maintenance to engineering operation. Everything will pass through the railway institute.)
“Kasi sabi namin, mayroon kang napakagandang subway, pero kung yung training ay kapos at kulang, maaaksaya yan o mawawalan ng kabuuang tunay na silbi,” he added.
(We have a subway this good, but all this will go to waste if the training to operate the trains is not good.)