Senate panel OKs measure giving PNR another 25 years

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – A measure extending the Philippine National Railways’ (PNR) life for another 25 years has been approved in the committee level at the Senate.

PNR, the state-owned agency that operates the Luzon railway system, is only given until June 19 this year to operate under Republic Act.

Senator Cynthia Villar said the committee on government corporations and public enterprises, which she chairs, filed a report this Tuesday, recommending PNR’s 25-year extension renewable for another 25 years.

“Instead of giving PNR another 50 years outright, we are extending it to 25 years but renewable for another 25 years so that we can review its performance,” Villar said in a statement on Tuesday.

Compared to jeepneys and buses that charge P2-per kilometer, she said, PNR provides the cheapest mode of transportation to people by charging only 71 centavos per kilometer.

“We are extending the operation of PNR because we want to provide our people in the lowest-income bracket a transport system that they can afford,” said Villar.

Villar said PNR should work to develop rail connectivity in the country as practiced in developed countries like USA, Japan, Malaysia, India, and China.

“Sa atin, we discovered na umikli pa ang route kilometers ng PNR. The Philippines has a total of 300,000 route kilometers. In its heyday during the 1970s, so to speak, PNR is running on 1,100 route kilometers (from La Union to Legaspi). Now, it is down to only 85 route kilometers (from Tutuban to Sta. Rosa and from Naga to Sipocot),” she pointed out.

Last year, Villar said about 20 million passengers or 55,400 commuters daily were serviced by PNR. This year, between 80,000 to 100,000 passengers per day use the PNR trains.

PNR currently operates commuter lines from Tutuban to Sta. Rosa, Laguna (covering 23 stations over a stretch of 50 kilometers) and from Naga to Sipocot (with route length of 35 kilometers).

The long-distance service to Legazpi, Bicol has been suspended in October 2012 because of typhoon-damaged bridges. But according to PNR, it plans resuming the service by September 2014 with a test run by next month.

RELATED STORY

DOTC, PNR to pursue $2.5B railway project