LRT 1, 2 operations suspended during Holy Week

MANILA, Philippines—Light Rail Transit operations will be suspended this coming Holy Week to give way for annual maintenance work, the government announced Monday.

In a statement, the LRT Authority said its train operations would be stopped starting 8 p.m. on Holy Wednesday, April 4, in line with the Department of Transportation and Communications’ (DoTC) Ligtas na Cuaresma (Safe Lent) Program for the Lenten season.

Normal operations will be restored on April 9, the Monday after Easter, at 5 a.m.  April 9 is a public holiday in commemoration of Araw ng Kagitingan (Day of Valor).

The LRT’s Line 1, or “Green Line,” runs from Baclaran in Pasay City to Roosevelt in Quezon City, while Line 2, or the so-called Purple Line, stretches from Recto in Manila to Santolan in Pasig City.

“In observance of the annual Holy Week, we are suspending our commercial operations starting at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 4,” said engineer Emerson L. Benitez, LRTA officer-in-charge. “During this period, we will conduct maintenance works for the two lines.”

Benitez said this would involve the cleaning and checking of all LRT facilities, systems and equipment, and replacement of catenary wires, and rail ballasts along critical segments.

Officials of the Metro Rail Transit did not reply to inquiries on whether operations of the commuter train line running along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue would also be suspended for maintenance works.

Many Metro Manila residents are expected to go home to their respective home provinces during the Holy Week, making this the best time for maintenance works that would lead to the least inconvenience to passengers.

The DoTC is in the middle of P1-billion worth of improvements for the three-decade-old LRT’s Green Line—currently the oldest commuter train line in the country.

These improvements include the replacement of over 23 kilometers of tracks that were installed when the LRT 1 was first built. More than half of these steel rails have thinned due to wear and tear, nearing dangerous levels.