File photo by NIÑO JESUS ORBETA / Philippine Daily Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) needs about P1.45 billion to install platform barriers on stations of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT 3) to prevent incidents such as a woman jumping onto the tracks of Metro Manila’s busiest railway last week.
The amount of required funding was confirmed by Transportation Assistant Secretary for Railways and MRT 3 officer in charge Jorjette Aquino with the Inquirer.
Putting up platform barriers is a safety measure to prevent passengers from accidentally falling into railway tracks, especially when a train is approaching the stations.
‘Budgetary constraints’
The importance of the said infrastructure was highlighted after a woman jumped in front of a moving train at the Quezon Avenue Station of MRT 3 on April 13. The passenger was brought to East Avenue Medical Center but was later declared dead.
However, the DOTr previously said there was no funding yet for such a project due to “budgetary constraints.”
Aquino, nonetheless, said they were keen on eventually putting up the platform barriers.
She said the installation of platform barriers was already proposed in the past “to prevent passengers from falling from the platform to the tracks, whether intentional or unintentional.”
For now, the DOTr official said that station and security personnel had been instructed to closely monitor passengers and make sure they were not stepping out of the yellow line (marker) while the trains were still approaching the platform.
‘Out of the normal’
The station staff, in addition, would be observing passengers for any “out of the normal movements,” Aquino noted.
Aquino, meanwhile, said that the construction of platform screen doors was already part of the ongoing railway projects such as the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) and Metro Manila Subway project. For the NSCR, the DOTr recently signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank to aid in the search for potential private partners.
The tunnel works for the first contract package of the subway project — which includes the construction of a depot in Valenzuela City, Quezon Highway station, Tandang Sora station, and North Avenue station — started in January. The project is expected to be completed by 2028.