Two megabuck projects of the Marcos administration with a combined cost of P1.36 trillion have been assured of continuity by the Department of Transportation’s Officer-in-Charge Secretary Giovanni Lopez, a lawyer and a certified public accountant by profession.
On Wednesday, September 3, Lopez officially took over the department and committed to fast-tracking the implementation of the P488.5-billion Metro Manila Subway Project and P873.6 billion North-South Commuter Railway.
At the turnover ceremony, Lopez said that 75 percent of the right-of-way (ROW) for the entire subway alignment, including underground tunnels and stations, has already been secured and is expected to be 100 percent complete by the second quarter of 2026.
“As of today, 75 percent. I mean, the entire subway. The subterranean and the station. Based on our latest data, there’s a possibility we’ll reach 95 percent ROW acquisition by the end of 2025 and 100 percent by the second quarter of next year,” Lopez said.
The Metro Manila Subway spans 33 kilometers across 8 local government units in Metro Manila and passes through 3 central business districts. The Subway also features a spur line to NAIA at Terminal 3 Station.
According to Lopez, who served as senior undersecretary during the watch of then DOTSRs Secretary Vince Dizon, the agency expects to complete the entire project by 2032, well beyond the original 2028 timeline. However, the agency aims to open two to three stations by 2028, particularly the stations in Valenzuela, Quirino, and hopefully North Avenue.
Meanwhile, DOTr is set to conduct the bidding for the Operation and Maintenance (O&M) of the North-South Commuter Railway in the fourth quarter this year.
The O&M was initially planned for September bidding, but the DOTr reset its schedule to the first week of October to allow more investors to participate, according to Lopez.
“We’re conducting market sounding to encourage more bidders. We’d rather move the timeline slightly to attract competitive offers than rush the process with limited participants,” he added.
The NSCR, a 147-kilometer commuter rail project, is one of the country’s flagship infrastructure initiatives aimed at easing travel between Clark, Pampanga, and Calamba, Laguna while reducing congestion in Metro Manila.
DOTr will conduct a roadshow in Japan this month, as part of its initiatives to attract foreign investors to join the bidding.
Last week, experienced rail operators and other companies from France have expressed interest to participate in the O&M of the NSCR system.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has tasked the DOTr to seek foreign and private expertise for the operations and management of the 147-kilometer railway.
During the market sounding activity in Paris last week, Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Timothy John Batan took note of the “encouraging” interest from other countries in operating and maintaining the NSCR.
