MANILA, Philippines — Three years after construction, the Metro Rail Transit Line 7 (MRT-7) is almost half to completion, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said on Monday.
The construction for the 22.8-kilometer elevated train line which will run from North Avenue in Quezon City to San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan province started in August 2016.
Citing the latest project status report, DOTr said the MRT-7 is 49.22%.
Civil works on the guideway are in various stages of construction, while civil works of nine of the 14 train stations are in “full swing.”
Installation of tracks is also ongoing, the DOTr said. The required rolling stock of 108 cars have also been completed and is ready to be shipped pending on the availability of the holding area.
The MRT-7 is eyed to be completed by 2022, the agency said. It aims to cut travel time between the two endpoints from two to three hours to 35 minutes. It is expected to carry about 28,000 passengers an hour per route or about 350,000 commuters a day.
The P69.3-billion project, which was started under the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III, was initially eyed to be finished this year.
READ: MRT 7 to Bulacan finally breaks ground
However, its completion was delayed due to right-of-way issues, the DOTr earlier explained.
READ: MRT-7 seen completed, ready for operations in 2019
The project is backed by conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC). The firm will also operate the MRT-7 under a 35-year concession agreement. It was the Hyundai Rotem-EEI group that was tapped to build the project.
The train line will have 14 stations including a station in the Quezon City Memorial Circle, University Avenue, Tandang Sora, Don Antonio, Batasan, Doña Carmen, Regalado, Mindanao Avenue, Quirino, Sacred Heart, and Tala.
At North Avenue, the MRT-7 will connect with the existing Light Rail Transit Line 1 and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 through the Unified Common Station project.
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