STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC.

Train Transportation in the Philippines: The Struggle

on the Development of Train System and the Action of
the Government

A Research
Presented to [Link] Catholic School
In Partial Fulfilment for the Requirements of the
Course - Research 1

Research by:
Joyce Azzinette L. Penales
Kharla Ranchez

October 2017
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Background of the Study

Brief History

Before the light rail transit (LRT) vehicles is created at the early 1880’s we first have
horse-drawn carriages outpost of the Spanish empire. The three type’s the most expensive,
the carruaje, a four wheeled drawn with a two horses. The cheapest to ride, The quiles, a
two wheeled drawn with only one horse ; it’s close cousin the calesa, where you can still
see in the street of Binondo, one of the oldest parts in the city.
In 1878, Leon Monssour, an official of the Department of Public Works, who is
inspired by new york and Paris, submitted an proposal for Madrid for a streetcar system ,a
perspective of five-line network with a central station outside the walls of instramuros.
From Plaza San Gabriel in Binondo, the lines were to run to Instramuros via the Puerte de
Espania known as Jone’s Bridge, to Malate Church, Malacanang,and Sampaloc and Tondo.
In 1882,Jocobo Zobel de Zangroniz ,the entrepreneur. Together with the Spanish engineer
Luciano M. Bremon and Madrid banker Dolfo Bayo, the three former La Compania de
Tranvias de Filipinas to operate the concession awarded by the government.1

In 12 July 1980, The Light Rail Transits Authority (LRTA) was established by Executive
Order No. 603 to construct the LRT system in the Philippines. The mission is to create a
fully integrated mass rail transit network to alleviate Metro Manila’s serious congestion.
The Meralco Transit Organization (METRO) and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Meralco,
was organized and contracted on July 31 1980 to manage and operate the system on day-to-
day basis under a 10-year Management and operating Agreement. Approximately 15 km,
LRT line 1(the only operational LRT System) is fully elevated, double-track system that
stretching along the Taft-Rizal corridor of Metro Manila. It has three terminal and 15
stations and initially operated with 32 train,(each one consisted with two articulated cars)
1
Satre ,Garry L.., The Metro Manila LRT System – A Historical Perspective,1998,june
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carrying about 450,000 passengers daily. A total of 1.4 billion passengers have been
transported since the commercial operation has started in December 1984. It run a at a 2 to
3 minutes headway from 05:30 until 21:30. Each have the capacity of 748 passengers (162
seated and 586 standing),and operating speed of 50-55 km/h (60 km/h max). 2
Through world wars, revolutions, typhoons and volcanic eruptions. From the time the
first rail tracks were laid in the Manila-Dagupan Ferro aril line in 1891 and the colonial
train had its first commercial run, until today when the Mainline South (Bicol line) is being
rehabilitated under much public anticipation, Philippine trains have been running for 120
years. At the Tutuban Central Terminal in a bustling district of old Manila, the train
journeys of the Philippine National Railways used to start or stop, to or from the north or
south ends of Luzon, the largest Philippine island.

From the Manila center towards Baguio in the north, the line ended in Damortis, La
Union while south line stopped in Legazpi City in the Bicol Peninsula. From here to there
and back it carried people and their goods, their trade and livelihood. From here to there it
ferried passengers and freight, towards beginnings and ends, transitions and celebrations.
Route of the Philippine National Railways. For years now, rapid growth of commuters
and vehicles population have plagued Metro Manila, the center of Philippine socio-
economic and political activity. Heavy traffic, pollution and all the attendant undesired
results are problems that Metro Manila has to contend with daily.3

A case in point is on EDSA, a 24-kilometer stretch from MacArthur Highway at

Caloocan City in the north of Metro Manila to Roxas Blvd., Pasay City, south of Metro
Manila. Considered one of the world's highest volume thoroughfares, EDSA is a semi-
circular ring road link with several radial roads leading to the metropolis' social,
economical and political centers. The avenue cuts across the cities of Caloocan, Quezon,
Mandaluyong, Makati, and Pasay and bounds Pasig City and the town of San Juan.

2
. Razon ,Evengeline M, The Manila LRT System
3
Natural Resources,``PNR in Philippine History’’(online).([cited 10 August 2017]) ,Available from
<[Link]/about-contact-us/who-we-are/pnr-in-philippine-history>
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EDSA's importance to the lives of more than eight million people - or 12 percent of the
country's 68 million citizens who live in Metro Manila cannot be underestimated. Added to
the metropolis' growing population are the transients and migrants who come to live in
Metro Manila in search of opportunities. Every birth, transient or migrant, is a potential
commuter who will likely join more than the 2.8 million people already using EDSA.

Statement of the Problem

Main Problem:
1. What are the struggles on the development of the train systems and what are the
actions of the government?
Sub- Problem:
1. How is that the development of the train system becomes the struggle in the
Philippines?
2. What are the struggles of the development of the train system in the Philippines?
3. What are the actions of the government for the slow development of the train systems,
and how does the government action can be understood on the slow progress on rail road
transportation systems?

Significance of the study

In this research we look into the general contribution of the transportation especially
here in the Philippines. Transportation is the most important in the modern time because it
facilitates trade, exchange and travel. Without effective transportation regions are largely
isolated from each other. Effective, affordable transportation also plays a role in letting
people move to a new areas. One of the main transportation in the Philippines is the
Railways, we have three (3) types of trains the Philippine National Railway(PNR), the
Light Rail Transit (LRT), and the Metro Rail Transit (MRT).4
4
Natural resources, (online) (cited, 14 August 2017 );Available from <[Link]
forms-task-force-to-speed-up-nlex-link-to-north-harbor>
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Scope and limitations

Information about the railroad transportation system shall be based on the source and
the person who made this research or the researcher

This research is focusing in the benefits and advantages on riding a train in every
[Link] trains are not the main mode of transportation that they once were in the
late 19th century, passenger trains still regularly traverse the European and North American
continents. Train travel offers several advantages over driving an automobile or flying.

Consider it before renting a car or booking a plane ticket . The respondent of this survey is
limited to acquire a more reliable and relevant data.

Methodology of the study

This paper is a review of the effect of vehicle characteristics on ground and track borne
vibrations from railways. It combines traditional theory with modern thinking and uses a
range of numerical analysis and experimental results to provide a broad analysis of the
subject area. First, the effect of different train types on vibrations propagations is
investigated. Then, despite not being the focus of this work, numerical approaches to
vibration propagation modelling within the track and soil are briefly touch upon. Next an
in-depth discussion is presented related to the evolution of numerical models, with analysis
of the suitability of various modelling approaches for analysing vehicle effects. It
concluded that train type and the contact conditions at the wheel/rail interface can be
influential in the generation of vibrations.

E. Review of Related Literature

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a. Articles

Chris Lo Rail at Rio+20: sustainable transport in the cities of the

future (Sustainable Development was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992)
JUN 21 2012

Sustainable development is in the spotlight at Rio+20, and a greater emphasis on

rail transport will play a major role. Chris Lo takes stock of the biggest rail and
public transport announcements coming out of this landmark UN event, including
the part rail has to play in developing the sustainable cities of the future.
This article is related to the present study in discussing the finance that is needed
by the country and the government to develop rail transportations. Due to small
budget amount the government needs companies that will help to build and to
develop new trains. 5

i. Ben O. de Vera, Miguel R. Camus Gov’t readies P1-T railway projects 5 road
maps seen boosting PH infra system (Philippine Daily Inquirer / 12:44 AM September
08, 2016)

5
Chris Lo Rail at Rio+20: sustainable transport in the cities of the future (Sustainable
Development was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992) 2012,Jun 21
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The Duterte administration has unveiled a P1-trillion nationwide pipeline of railway

projects, most of which will be located in Luzon and Metro Manila where traffic
congestion was at its worst, apart from urban centers in Cebu and Mindanao .
The plan was included in the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) detailed
submission to Sen. Grace Poe, who is heading the committee on public services, in
line with the government’s request for special powers to combat the traffic crisis in the
capital.6

iii. The struggle for on-time trains continue Posted by Malcolm Kenton
on Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Last week's Eighth Circuit US Court of Appeals ruling invalidating passenger
train on-time performance standards enacted by the Surface Transportation Board means
that Congress must act in order for there to be a mechanism for fixing ongoing failures of
host railroads to keep passenger trains ru2@2nning punctually. The STB wrote its
definition of OTP — which considered a train’s punctuality at all stations, not just its
final terminus — after the DC Circuit overturned the standards that the Federal Railroad
Administration and Amtrak jointly wrote pursuant to Section 207 of the 2008 Passenger
Rail Investment and Improvement Act (PRIIA).
hat section, which mandated the formation of a plethora of performance standards
covering more than just OTP, was found to be an unconstitutional granting of regulatory
powers to an entity, albeit a governmental one, that also participates in the industry being
regulated. Had Congress simply omitted four words from the law, “and Amtrak shall
jointly,” there would have been no legal problem as the FRA would have had the sole
power to write the metrics and standards.

For now, the only recourse passenger train operators have when their trains are
routinely delayed by host railroads due to factors within the host’s control is to exercise

6
Ben O. de Vera, Miguel R. Camus“Gov’t readies P1-T railway projects 5 road maps seen boosting PH infra
system “ Philippine Daily Inquirer, 08 September 2016,12:44 AM
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whatever penalties are built into their operating agreements with individual railroads.
These agreements are private contracts whose contents are not made available to the
public. It is unclear whether the STB has the authority to investigate complaints and
prescribe remedies under the current arrangement. The 1973 amendment to Amtrak’s
natal statute giving the carrier dispatching preference over freight trains still stands, but it
is toothless and doesn’t apply to passenger trains not operated by Amtrak.

Congress is not likely to act on this until 2021, as the current authorizing policy for
intercity passenger rail (last year’s FAST Act, which did not alter PRIIA’s metrics &
standards language) does not expire until Sept. 30 of that year, and 2021 is not an election
year. The next ICPR law should either spell out, or give FRA or STB guidelines for
developing, a set of minimum performance metrics that apply to all passenger train
operators, not just Amtrak. This will ensure that Amtrak trains are not always given
preferential treatment over other passenger trains that share the same track, be they
commuter trains or privately-operated intercity trains. PRIIA Sect. 207 erred in
prescribing standards in a way that benefitted only Amtrak, leading commuter agencies
and independent operators to join with the freight railroads in the successful lawsuit
opposing the law.7

Reliability and frequency are the two most important components of a passenger train
service that can win travelers away from cars and airplanes. Even if a train has the most
comfortable and attractive equipment, fast on-board Wi-Fi, consistently excellent
customer service and other amenities, if it cannot be expected to arrive within a half hour
of its schedule most of the time and if there are only a limited number of departures, the
train will lose potential riders’ business to other modes.

There are many corridors where the condition of its infrastructure (in most cases a mere
shadow of what it once was) leaves a host railroad unable to accommodate the level of
passenger service the public demands without disproportionately hampering freight
service. In those cases, public entities should put forward sufficient funds to make
7
Malcolm Kenton, The struggle for on-time trains [Link], July 19, 2017
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upgrades necessary for the line to be more fluid — which doesn’t mean that governments
should give in to the host railroad’s every demand. Instead, both parties should negotiate
earnestly to reach a compromise, and freight railroads should be willing to kick in funds
proportional to the benefit of additional capacity and fluidity to their freight operations.
Even if that compromise results in passenger train schedules that are generously padded,
as long as the travel times are reasonably competitive with driving, it is better for trains to
run mostly on-time on a longer schedule than to have a shorter schedule but mostly run
late. 8

Some will argue that metrics for passenger trains’ timekeeping, incentives for good
dispatching and penalties for poor performance should be purely contractual matters to be
negotiated between the passenger train operator and the host railroad. The reasoning goes
that not having rigid requirements from on high allows the host-tenant relationship to be
less adversarial. I agree that, in general, host and tenant railroads should strive for a
cooperative, mutually beneficial relationship. But at the same time, there should be
minimum standards in place to protect the traveling public using the FRA-regulated
national rail network (regardless of whose train they are riding) from unnecessary and
arbitrary delays caused by host railroads and some mechanism for their enforcement.
Particularly when (as is the case with most passenger trains) the taxpaying public is
helping to cover the service’s operating costs, there should be some way to ensure that
the public is getting a reliable service for its money.

Regulatory OTP standards should be developed with maximal input from freight
railroads, passenger carriers (Amtrak and others), states, commuter agencies and other
interested parties. They should leave some leeway for individual contracts to go above
and beyond the minimum standards with incentives and penalties, and for innovative
approaches to achieving high performance of both passenger and freight trains on shared

8
ibid
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track. But at the same time, federal law or regulation should provide a way for passenger
train operators to enforce the outcomes to which they have agreed with their host
railroads.

New, fairer OTP standards are one of several legislative reforms that are needed to
unlock the great potential for various public and private actors — with or without
federal, state or local government backing — to start up new passenger services or
enhance or supplement existing ones without encountering prohibitive upfront costs
and other legal and logistical hurdles. Many of these obstacles were enacted with good
intentions, but under an outdated conceptual framework or without thinking holistically
about their consequences.

Keeping passenger and freight trains running reliably — and maintaining an

environment favorable to the expansion and improvement of the passenger train
network — will require a collaborative and sustained effort, with elected and regulatory
bodies acting in the interest of the traveling public while respecting railroads’ right to
serve their customers without unreasonable impediment.9

B . Books

i. The new book of knowledge. U.S. Patent Office (p. 285)

Rail road locomotives in the 1880’s burn wood for fuel which created bast plunks of
grills in front of the engine was called cowcatcher because it remove obstacle from the
tracks. Modern turbo trains called bullet trains because of their shapes and there high

9
ibid
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speed. Japan Shinkanshen system which has been in operation since the 1960’s can
travel at 160 miles (260 kilometer) at an hour.

The railroad industry began in England near the beginning of the industrial
revolution. In 1804 Richard Trevithick built the first steam locomotive to run on tracks
.it is said to have pulled 10 tons and 70 people. The first steam engines were far from
perfect.

They first steam engines were far from perfect. They wasted fuel and frequently
broke down. However, it was less expensive to repair the engines than to feed and care
for horses, the most commonly used “vehicles.” The idea of railway trains soon caught
on. In 1825 the first steam-powered railroad for public service, the Stockton and
Darlington line, opened in England. Five years later the first railroad in the United
States, the Baltimore and Ohio open.10

Within a short time after railroads were in traduced, most of the coaching companies
were forced out of business. The people who owned stagecoaches and hauled freight
by wagons had to find new ways to make a living. As the railroads took over much of
the transportation on land, and roads were used less for long-distance travel and
hauling, the railroads became neglected. They did not receive much public attention
until the early 1900’s, when the era of the automobile began.
Most American trains today are pulled by diesel or electric engines. Steam
locomotives are still used in some Latin-American, European, and Asian countries.
Trains have been developed in France, Japan, and Germany that operate on gas
Turbaned. These turbo trains can travel at speeds exceeding 180 miles (290
kilometers) per hour.

10
. U.S. Patent Office ,New Book of knowledge (p. 285)
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In recent times passenger train have had to face increasing competition from
planes, automobiles, and buses. But the railroad is still the leader in freight hauling on
land.11

[Link] L. Bryant, Jr., Technology and Culture, Vol. 37, No.4(Oct.,

1996), pp.843-845

In this book the impact of geography and technology on the development of the
railway systems of the United States and Canada. James E. Vance, Jr., elaborates on
some of the major themes of his earlier work, Capturing the Horizon: The Historical
Geography of Transportation since the Transportation Revolution of the Sixteenth
Century ( New York: Harper & Row, 1986). (The omission of Mexico, despite the
book’s title, is not explained.) Vance argues that neither of these rail systems followed
the British model nor that the Canadian railways largely emulated their cousins to the
south. Geographical factors determined the location of railroads in both countries
whose systems evolved through technological innovations. The British had
constructed railroads to supplement existing trade routes that had been overtaxed by
the Industrial Revolution. In the United States and Canada the railways were built
though unsettled territories before economic development could support the carriers.
By 1917, however, the vast expanse of North America was interlaced with railways
more sophisticated technologically than their counterparts around the globe.

Vance sets up a straw man at the outset of the book, arguing that historians have
erred in contending that Great Britain’s served as the basic model for systems
elsewhere. It is unlikely that any scholar would make such a case today, but Vance
engaged in “baptism,” he contends, spending vast sums on infrastructure. Superb
11
Ibid
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bridges and tunnels kept curvature and gradients to a minimum while traffic demands
on the carriers led to Multitasks lines. Because of the high quality of the British
physical plant, it was possible for the locomotives builders to produce small, low-
powered, technologically unsophisticated motive power. Conditions in the US and
Canada led to antipodal responses.12

iii. Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge vol. 26, “railways”

Crude railways---house-drawn wagons with wooden wheels and rail---had been used
in English and European mines during the 17th century between 1797 and 1813.
Richard Trevithick and other early inventors adapted primitive steam locomotives to
the mine railway. In 1825, George Stephenson build and equipped the 32-km (20-mil)
Stockton and Darlington Railways, the first public railway in the world to be powered
by a steam locomotives, and a fever of railroad building began in England.
Although it first appeared in England, the railroad had its most dramatic growth in
the United States. By 1840 more than 4,800 km (3,000) of railroad were already
operating in the eastern states, a figure 40% greater than the total railroad mileage of
Europe. By the eve of the Civil War the iron network in the U.S was more than 48,000
km (30,000 mi) long, and the railroads of the western lines had nearly caught up with
the ever-moving western frontier.

Following the Civil War several railroad lines were extended all the way to the
Pacific coast (see TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD), the first being the Union

12
Bryant, Jr, Kieth L., Technology and Culture, Vol. 37, No.4(Oct., 1996), pp.843-845
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 14

Pacific-Central Pacific, completed in 1869. Railroad construction in general was very

rapid n the postwar decades: by 1890 the length of the U.S. rail system was 262,000
km (163,000 mi), and by 1916 it had reached an all-time high of 409,00km (254,000
mi) since World War 1, however, the U.S. railroads have been in a decline, due partly
to the rapid development of private automobiles, truck, buses, pipelines, and airlines.13

VI. Quality of life Indicators and Policy Strategies to Advance sustainability in Pearl
River Delta: Transportation

In the early 1990s, china designed automotive industry as a pillar industry of the
national economy, The intended strategies and desired outcome were documented in
automotive industrial policy in 1994 (Holwed, Luo, and Oliver,2009). The policy
made it Lear that the development of the automotive productive has grown from
approximately 2.5 million vehicles in 2004 to over 18 million in 2013(statista,2014).
China produced more passenger car in 2013 than any other country (International
Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufactures, 2013),although foreign brands make up
an increasing share of the domestic market, now over 75 percent. The number of
registered cars in china increased from around 1 million in 1994 to 7.8milllion in
2001, to 32.7 million in 2008, and to 120million in 2012 (pan,2011;”China’s Vehicle
Population hits240 million as smog engulfs cites,’ 2013).

This relatively sudden motorization, which includes commercial vehicles, has

brought considerable benefits to china, including economic growth, mobility to

13
Grolier Encyclopedia of Knowledge Vol. 26, “railways”
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 15

citizens and commercial entitles, and improvements in social welfare. However, it has
also created a number of environmental and social challenges. Rapid motorization,
together with urbanization, has led to increases in traffic congestion, traffic deaths and
injuries, air pollution ,noise, and energy consumption. Leaders in PRD cities face the
daunting challenges of meeting ever-increasing consumer demand for mobility,
while working to reduce vehicle kilometers traveled (VKT) without hampering
economic growth.14

C. journal article

i. The Theory of transportation ( chapter xi the relation of transportation

to markets, prices, competitions, ETC.) pp.323-324

Transportation, in the measure of its efficiency, strikes from economic force the
chains of time and place .We should cover most of the needs to be said in this
connection in saying that transportation promotes competition, if we gave a
sufficiently wide construction to the world. Free movement extends the scope and
application of agriculture, mechanical labor, directive talent, inventions, capital,---of
all economic factors whatsoever. One can best understand this matter by approaching
it from several points of view, as those of supply and demand, of markets, of prices
and of competition.

In just the measure that the difficulty of movement is overcome, that transportation
becomes quick and cheap, is the reach of the effective demand extended. Where crude
means of conveyance prevent the movement of goods the demand of the people of a
single place is limited in its working to the close vicinity of that place, while the needs
of other places are not felt as a demand. Facility of movement, by extending the scope
of demand, tends also, other things equal, to make it uniform and to give it a more
14
Quality of life Indicators and Policy Strategies to Advance sustainability in Pearl River Delta: Transportation
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 16

varied character. It becomes more uniform, because not so much affected by accidental
local changes. If demand in modern markets is more fickle and fluctuating than in
those of an earlier time, it is not because of better transportation, which of itself always
tends to uniformity, but because of the contrary action of forces that transportation has
been unable to overcome. The character of demand is diversified; witness the degree in
which oranges and other southern fruit have recently become necessary to the people
of the north.15

Supply tends to become more uniform in different times and places. This I very
obvious in the necessaries of life. The great famines of former times are now almost
unknown because of the ease with which a local scarcity can be remedied by
importation . Though the interdependence of nations as to these necessaries is
increased, it has also become generalized; thus, while the dependence of England upon
the rest of the world for grain is greater than ever before, it is less than ever a
dependence upon any particular grain-growing country. The supply may come from
America , Australia, India, the Black Sea. The general result, therefore, is greater
security and regularity of supply the world over.

Quick transportation diminishes the need for holding large stocks of goods. With
railroads dealers are far less compelled than formerly to anticipate the demands of
their customers a long time ahead. In many lines of trade the stock held is hardly more
than samples, the railroad and the telegraph being trusted to for the filling of large
orders. This is particularly the case in the wholesale trade, where goods are commonly
shipped from the factories after the order is taken. The factories, in turn, adopt the
same plan with raw materials; they hold as little as they can and prefer to buy only for
immediate needs.

15
Ibid
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The outcome of this is that the whole economic process is greatly hastened. The
holding of a stock involves the lengthening of the time between production and
consumption. under present methods that time is so much reduced that the material, in
the iron trade for example, are frequently in their crude state when the order for the
finished product is taken.16

ii. The Theory of transportation Chapter xiii transportation and rent

The relations of transportation to the distribution of product among industrial

classes---to wages, interest and the question of labor and capital associated with these,
are for the most part too remote and indirect to enter into our inquiry. This, however,
is not the case with rent.

Rent is closely connected with transportation because it is a matter of areas and

distances, of places relations. I said at the beginning of the present division of the
subject that the study of the economic relations of transportation was nearly equivalent
to the study of society in its place relations; and this nation holds good at the present
point.

Rent would exist as a result of transportation alone, were there no differences in the
fertility of soils. That is to say, varying productivity, a fundamental conception of the
Ricardian theory, is not indispensable to the existence of rent. Nor is it necessary that
the supply of land be limited. In the case of uniform soil rent would exist, and its law
would be as follow:

16
The Theory of transportation ( chapter xi the relation of transportation to markets,
prices, competitions, ETC.)pp.323-325
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 18

Rent arises from differences in the cost of getting commodities to market, and is
measured by the difference between this cost in any given case and that in the case of
the most remote land which it pays to cultivate. This is of course nothing new in this
proposition, but it emphasizes the fact, perhaps imperfectly realized, that the
conditions of coordinate with fertility and the margin of cultivation.17

Transportation is, accordingly an element entering into all rent, and changes rents. It
is the tendency of progressing facility of movement, other things remaining equal, to
lower rents by diminishing the differences in the cost of reaching markets. A familiar
example id the fall of agricultural rents in England, due to that development of
steamships and railroads which gave American wheat fields access to English markets.
Something of the same sort has also taken place between the eastern and western states
of this country. Agricultural rents in many parts of the east have gone down and farms
ceased to be cultivated because the cheapening of railway movement has decreased the
advantage of their situation.

This principle has an application to ground rents in cities that is important in view of
the economic problems connected with such rents, and of the surprising progress of
urban transportation. Street, elevated and underground railways, in proportion to their
efficiency, tend to diminish ground rents by distributing city population and business
over a wider area. This is particularly true in the matter of dwelling sites, which
commonly seek as great a distance from the center as the means of getting back and
forth will permit.18

9
In other words we have, so far as this is true, a state of things commonly supposed
to be peculiar to a very primitive condition of industry.

It is of course obvious that many forces work directly against transportation in this
matter; the growing complexity of production and exchange tends to lengthen the time
between the extraction of the raw materials and consumption. But transportation has
17
Ibid pp.323
18
Cf The theory of transportation pp.324
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 19

primarily and of itself the action stated, and is so far effectual that the contrast between
present and past trade in the need for anticipating demand is probably less than
commonly imagined.

Were all other conditions stationary efficient transportation would tend, for the
reasons given, to diminish the need for capital in production and exchange? One use of
capital, as everyone knows, is to tide over the period between production and
consumption. In so far as facility of movement shortens this period it does away with
the need for capital. Something of this is sees in the ease with which many sorts of
business, as the sale of agricultural implements, are carried on though agents, who are
either in the employ of the manufacturer or else local dealers with little or no capital.
Only the promptness with which each order can be filled from the factory, does away
here with the necessity for large stocks, and hence for a corresponding large
investment.19

II

19
The Theory of transportation (chapter xii transportation and rents )pp. 325
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Public Transportation and the struggle among Filipinos. The traffic is surreal or much
better to say, worst. The heavy traffic makes you look as if you went into a fierce battle. A
lot of people use jeepneys and it doesn’t have any air conditioning system on it so you’ll be
left with the open air. Also add the smokes coming in from the other vehicles. Even in air
conditioned buses, sometimes you’ll be left standing inside if you got no choice because
you’re going to be late if you still insist choosing a bus with a lot of free space. The same
applies when using the MRT (Manila Metro Rail Transit System) or LRT (Light Rail
Transit) especially in peak hours. So if you just got off from the bathroom for a refreshing
bath, sometimes you wish there’s a bathroom too in your office where you can take a bath
Traffic in Metro Manila has gotten worse and will only get worse as our population
increases. Thus more and more commuters are waking up earlier than usual to avoid traffic
or at least give themselves enough allowance to get to work on time in spite of heavy
traffic. . Development of light rail lines in the Philippine capital of Manila is being carried
out with the aim of reducing acute road congestion on the city's busiest corridors by the
year [Link] city's population is expected to soar to around 18 million by then, and rail-
borne urban transit is a key to the drive to reduce air pollution. From 12,000 passengers a
day when it opened in December 1984, the light rail system peaked at 450,000 in August
1994, and is currently around 300,[Link], originally under Belgian influence,
has undergone many changes and a contract from 2003 was left to a Franco-Phillipines
consortium called Genial’s-SKI-PKI. More lines are planned.20

There are also many thing that commuters are struggling one of this is that the train
system will fail at a certain day, may of the commuter will be delay to their destination
and also the long line of each station, we have only just a certain amount of train to be
use . Even in other transportation the traffic is still one of the reasons for the commuter

20
[ Online](2016/01/07/3)(cited Sept. 12,2017),available from <http:/[Link]/teend6iaries/2016/01/01/3-
reasons-why-public-transportation-is-a-struggle-among-filipinos/>C
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 21

to wait for hours or in line just to be in their certain destination. Population increases,
lacking of the capacity of the train, the number of people riding it.21

Differences between LRT and MRT

Over the years, men have discovered new ways how to provide a better mode of
transportation. Asian countries like the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan have LRT and
MRT as their modes of transportation in this modern age. “LRT” stands for “light rail
transit” while “MRT” stands for “metro rail transit” or “mass rapid transit.” Since both
modes of transportation work and look the same, how are they exactly different from each
other?

Both LRT and MRT are very rapid transportation systems. For example, if you travel by
Jeepney to your destination, it can consume a full 30 minutes before you ever get there.
However, if you ride the LRT or MRT, you can reach your place of destination in just a
matter of three to five minutes. Rapid, right? Actually, the LRT and MRT are very similar
to each other. In the Philippines, the only differences between the two modes of
transportation are the routes and the company that runs them. The LRT is mostly ridden by
commuters who are along the Taft Avenue-Rizal Avenue and Ramon Magsaysay Blvd-
Aurora Blvd routes. On the other hand, the MRT is mostly ridden by commuters from
EDSA. The LRT is owned by the Philippine government, while the MRT is owned by Fil-
Estate, a private company. If you are in Singapore, both the LRT and MRT are operated by
SBS Transit, also a bus network company. The LRT in Singapore is usually preferred by
people if they are traveling inside the city. Since the LRT is meant to help passengers reach
their destination point in the city, there are many stops. The LRT is also smaller
in length compared to the MRT. However, the LRT is slower in speed. Since 1999,
Singapore already uses LRT as one of their modes of transportation.22

21
ibid
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 22

In Singapore, MRT is called mass rapid transit. The MRT looks like a system of cars that
are bound together to travel at rapid speeds. People from Singapore prefer riding the MRT
in the daytime to travel along long distances which are very congested. The MRT is located
underground. The MRT route in Singapore is about 130 km and has around 87 stations.
When you get off the MRT, you can then ride a bus to get at your specific location since
the MRT stations are built away from the main areas. Riding the LRT and MRT offers
great advantages. First of all, they are cheap modes of transportation. If they are cheap,
then you can save a lot of money. Both the LRT and MRT are also environmentally
friendly. They don’t emit fumes or create air pollution. They are also very convenient since
you can reach your destination in a matter of few minutes. You won’t be stuck in traffic.
However, there are also some disadvantages. Since several people want to flee from the
traffic, the LRT and MRT are usually overcrowded. When it is overcrowded, there are
many physical assaults. Women are often touched by perverted men passengers. And the
stench of the people mixes all together. It is also noisy on the LRT and MRT despite
reminders to remain quiet during the traveling hours.

Manila's LRT and MRT Lines

Manila possesses three light rail systems and one heavy train line. The light rail
systems - LRT-1, LRT-2 and MRT-3 - service commuters from as far north as Quezon
City to as far south as Pasay City. Most of the train stations of interest are clustered
around the main city of Manila, particularly along the LRT-1 line.

LRT-2 and MRT-3 extends further north and east into bedroom communities in
Quezon City and Marikina. MRT-3 in particular provides the main gateway into the

22
Philippine Highways: Highway Planning Survey; A Study of the Highway Transport System,
Requirements and Recommendations. Philippine Bureau of Public Works, Manila. Philippines,
Republic
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 23

Philippine capital's burgeoning business districts, Makati, Ortigas and Bonifacio

Global City.23

The PNR train system - Manila's first - has seen better days. From 298 miles of rail
in its heyday, the PNR's network has shrunk down to 52 miles, with few meaningful
connections for travelers. A sleeper line to Bicol is still in the works, the project being
bedeviled by defective tracks.24

Unlike most modern rail systems around the world, Manila's rail lines do not connect
with the airport at all.

If you insist on riding the rail most of the way to Ninoy Aquino International
Airport, get off the train at the Taft Station (for MRT) or EDSA/Pasay Station (for
LRT) and walk to a nearby bus stop that handles the Airport Loop bus.

Manila Destinations near MRT-3

The 10-mile, 13-station MRT-3 Line shows up as blue on the system map. It runs
down the crowded Epifanio de los Santos (EDSA) thoroughfare, connecting Quezon
City in the north to the cities of Pasig, Mandaluyong, Makati, and Pasay. Its two most
popular stops are Cubao (gateway to Quezon City) and Ayala Avenue (gateway to the
Makati central business district).

 Manila's malls are found in abundance along the MRT-3 line. North Avenue
Station (location on Google Maps) immediately connects to the Trinoma Mall; Ortigas
Avenue Station (location on Google Maps) is a five-minute walk away from SM
Megamall; and Ayala Avenue Station (location on Google Maps) immediately

23
Pak-Poy & Kneebone Pty Ltd in Association with RJ Nairn & Partners Pty Ltd DCCD Engineering
Corporation and Specialists Consultants (1984) . “

24
ibid
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 24

connects to the SM Makati Mall, which is connected to the rest of the Ayala Center
shopping complex.
 Makati central business district is easily accessible via Ayala Avenue Station
(location on Google Maps). The central business district is one of the capital's most
pedestrian-friendly places, with a network of pedestrian walkways connecting the
Ayala Center mall complex (immediately adjacent to the MRT station) to neighboring
Salcedo and Legazpi villages.
Riding Manila's LRT and MRT lines can be a bit challenging for travelers used
to the convenience of Singapore's MRT, true - but no system can get you to your
destination faster and cheaper than the train. We've put together a few tips to make
train commuting in Manila a bit easier for the first-time visitor. 25

Metro Rail Transit

Benefits for the Philippines

Economic Growth

Studies show that property values in the proximity of a public transit system increase by
42%.

Road Decongestion

The MRT-3 system can transport over 1,100 passengers across 16.9km of Metro Manila
in approximately 30 minutes. The same load and journey by road would require hundreds
of vehicles and take roughly 3.5 hours. Last 2011, 158,806,049 Filipinos and tourists
benefitted from the MRT-3 service.

25
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 14,September 2017], available
from:<[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 25

Less CO2 Emissions and Air Pollution

The American Public Transit Association has reported that an electric light rail train
produces nearly 99% less carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emissions per mile than one
automobile.

Job Creation

The MRT-3 System provides thousands of Filipinos with stable and secure employment.
Furthermore, the creation of a fast and reliable transit system which directly connects to
hubs of social and economic interest has boosted entrepreneurship and the growth of Small-

to-Medium Enterprises.

BENEFITS FOR THE RIDERS

Affordable Mode of Transport

An MRT ride from North Avenue to Taft Avenue costs P28.00.

Fast, Efficient, Reliable

The MRT-3 is designed to travel up to 65kph, averaging at 30-40kph.

Convenient Station Locations

The MRT-3 Stations are located beside other public transportation depots, such as taxi
stands or bus terminals. Several stations are also connected directly to major shopping
malls, such as SM Makati, Ayala Center in Cubao, and Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong.

Health and Exercise Promotion

Walking to and from stations promotes fitness and overall health, leading to healthier and
happier citizens.26

26
Ibid
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 26

Thesis Outline and Organization

Will discuss the different proposal of foreign companies to build a rail projects in
Mindanao
Here, the study will describe and explain that foreign contractors have interest to build
local infrastructure to leverage their ``experience’’ in our country especially in Mindanao.
Chapter 2 will discuss on how the benefits of MRT for the Philippines and it’s
commuters this action will be be divided into two parts for better understanding:

A. Benefits for the Philippines

In this part, the study will explain on how the system benefits the country
B. Benefits for the commuter/rider
Here, the study will show how the train helps its commuters.
Chapter 3 will discuss the sub problem 2 and where the study flow.
A. Things in developing the rail road train systems.
It includes things such as Kruch the most important part of the train it consists the
signaling method and the catenaries it can fully develop by the help of the leading
international infrastructure providers.
B. Financial Struggle
In this part it discuss about the cost that will spend in developing the trains and the
allocated trains in different parts of the Philippines, a project that cared by the Duterte
administration.
Chapter 4 will discuss on how and what are the actions of the government on the slow
progress on developing the rail road systems.27

IDEOGRAM CHAPTER II
27
How it become
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 14,September 2017], available from
a struggle
<[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 27

Traffic Train
transportation

Electri Low
Popul cal comm
ation proble odity
increa

Broke
Abstra n
ction railwa

III

The development of accessible forms of mass transport, particularly metro and light
rail projects goes hand-in-hand with the concept of sustainable urban growth. A
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 28

dramatic growth in public transport will be essential, proponents argue, if cities want to

promote sustainable growth and curb the emissions from millions of car exhausts.
Looking at the 27 principles of the original Rio Declaration on Environment and
Development, it's impossible not to notice that a huge amount of work remains if the
world is to achieve positive human development without sacrificing the world's fragile
natural resources

a. Things to use in developing Railroad systems.

One of the most important things in developing the train is the KRUCH is a specialist

in signaling and catenaries solutions for the railway sector, working closely with
leading international rail infrastructure providers. It is an Austrian company with 147
years experience in the industry. Our products combine functionality with ease of use,
significantly reducing lifecycle costs. It develop, produce and deliver components, such
as flexible hangers, automatic tensioning systems and load weights, adjustable
catenaries masts with cantilevers, remote condition monitoring systems for catenaries
and pantographs, signal masts with lift (also for retrofitting), energy flow simulation
(online simulation tool). 28

b. Financial struggles

28
Natural resource; railway-technology facts [online] [cited 14 September 2017]; available from
<[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 29

All told, 14 train projects valued at P1.07 trillion were named in the 64-page document.
Some of these, like the Light Rail Transit Line 1 extension to Cavite and capacity
expansion at the Metro Rail Transit Line 3, have been bid out by the previous Aquino
administration. However, a good deal more have yet to be implemented or rolled out.
According to an indicative timeline, all but one train project—a proposed 14-kilometer
subway line linking business districts in Metro Manila—would be finished by the time the
Duterte administration ends in 2022, assuming special powers were granted. The subway
line, the single-biggest component on the list with a project cost of P219 billion, would be
done by the second quarter of 2023, the DOTr said. Of the train projects, 11 are located in
Luzon, with many of these aimed at providing easier access to and from Metro Manila.
New projects in Luzon were the LRT Line 4, a 19-km line from Taytay in Rizal to Ortigas
Avenue; LRT Line 6, a 19-km train from Niyog in Cavite to Dasmariñas also in Cavite; the
35-km PNR North Commuter line from Tutuban to Malolos, Bulacan; and another 55-km
PNR North extension from Malolos to Clark, Pampanga. There was also a PNR South Line
running 72-km from Tutuban to Los Baños, Laguna, as well as the LRT-2 East and West
extension lines. The DOTr also named a Line 5a, which is a railway “spur line” to the
Makati central business district using an existing tunnel. The agency also detailed a 25-km
Cebu rail project costing P98 billion, including right of way, a 25-km Central Philippine
Rail, also with a total project cost of P86 billion, and a 20-km Mindanao Rail project,
which would cost P79 [Link] previous government has worked hard to accelerate
infrastructure development in the Philippines and the Duterte administration is redoubling
efforts to achieve quantum improvement in infrastructure, including energy requirements,
at The Philippines Energy and Infrastructure Finance Forum 2016 organized by Euro
money.29

IDEOGRAM CHAPTER III

29
Natural resource; business inquirer facts Advantages
[online] [cited and
14 September 2017]; available
from<[Link]
Disadvantage(s)
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 30

DIFFERENCE Financial Things to be Benefits for

(S) struggles use in the country
developing
MRT/LRT trains

The Allotte KRUC Efficie

routes H
and the d nt and
compan project reliable

Length Organiz And Promot

and e by the signali e the
capacit
Euro ng econo
money
my

IV
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 31

The Philippine National Railways, being a factor for socio-economic development

growth, shall be part of the infrastructure program of the government and as such shall
remain in and under government ownership during its corporate existence.

The PNR must be administered with the view of serving the interests of the public by
providing them the maximum of service and, while aiming at its greatest utility by the
public, the economy of operation must be ensured so that service can be rendered at the
minimum passenger and freight prices possible. A pearl buried inside a tightly-shut shell is
practically worthless. Government information is a pearl, meant to be shared with the
public in order to maximize its inherent value. The Transparency Seal, depicted by a pearl
shining out of an open shell, is a symbol of a policy shift towards openness in access to
government information. On one hand, it hopes to inspire Filipinos in the civil service to be
more open to citizen engagement; on the other, to invite the Filipino citizenry to exercise
their right to participate in governance. This initiative is envisioned as a step in the right
direction towards solidifying the position of the Philippines as the Pearl of the Orient – a
shining example for democratic virtue in the region.

Only 5 MRT Trains are running long lines at stations. Only 5 trains are running as of 12
pm, down from the usual 10 to 15 trains MANILA, Philippines– Only 5 trains of the Metro
Rail Transit (MRT3) were running on Tuesday afternoon, April 21, triggering long queues
and angering commuters who had been lining up for hours.30

MRT personnel said only 5 trains out of the usual 10 to 15 trains were running as of 12
pm, forcing the buildup of passengers inside the MRT stations. According to initial reports,
passengers at the North Avenue station were told to disembark and take the next train due
to a technical glitch. Hundreds of displaced passengers were seen massed near the North
Avenue Station, waiting for transportation. As of 5 pm, 14 trains were already running,
30
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 16,September 2017], available from
<[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 32

according to transportation spokesperson Michael Arthur Sagcal.MRT3 Director for

Operations Renato San Jose said 6 trains had been sent to the depot after encountering
problems with the air-conditioning system. At least 10,000 passengers were affected by the
limited operations. And Jose said APT Global, the train line's maintenance provider, will be
fined for the glitches.

The Duterte administration gets plenty of attention—positive and otherwise—for its

aggressive war on [Link] lesser known is an aggressive plan to combat poor
infrastructure that has hobbled economic growth for [Link] of the current
administration’s projects revealed so far are actually carryovers from previous
administrations. This article, nevertheless, outlines a number of the projects the current
administration said it would [Link], P8 trillion in infrastructure spending was
pledged through Duterte’s six-year term. The aim is to bring infrastructure spending up to 7
percent of the country’s economic output, from the current 5 percent.

More details here were shared under the economic team’s “build, build, build” banner that
was unveiled in late [Link] of the projects fall under the Department of Transportation
and Department of Public Works and [Link] a relatively smaller scope outside
transportation, there were also projects to address flooding, water supply, school
infrastructure, healthcare, prison quality and [Link] biggest items involve the railway
sector, the lion’s share of which will be built in Luzon.

The DOTr earlier said there were more than a dozen train projects worth over P1
[Link] included modernizing, upgrading and increasing the capacity of the Metro Rail
Transit Line 3 and extending the Light Rail Transit Line 1 to Cavite, being undertaken by a
consortium led by Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Ayala [Link] projects lined up
for Luzon were the LRT Line 4, a 19-km line from Taytay Rizal to Ortigas Avenue; LRT
Line 6, a 19-km train from Niyog, Cavite to Dasmariñas, Cavite; the 35-km PNR North
Commuter line from Tutuban to Malolos, Bulacan and another 55-km PNR North
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 33

extension from Malolos to Clark, [Link] South Line running 72-km from Tutuban
to Los Baños, Laguna and LRT-2 East and West extension lines are also on the [Link]
DOTr cited “Line 5a,” a railway “spur line” to the Makati central business district which
would use an existing tunnel. In Cebu, there would be a 25-km rail project costing P98
billion; a 25-km Central Philippine Rail worth P86 billion, and a 2,000-km Mindanao Rail
[Link]’s also a proposed Manila-Clark (Pampanga) railway, which will “guarantee”
one hour travel time from the capital district to Clark [Link] under construction is
the P71-billion MRT-7 line that will link Metro Manila (Quezon City) to Bulacan. This
would be finished by 2020 and will be operated by San Miguel [Link] DOTr said most
of the projects would be done or partially opened during the term of President Duterte.31

There was also a proposed 14-kilometer subway line linking business districts in Metro
Manila. But this would be finished beyond 2022, when Mr. Duterte’s term ends, the DOTr
[Link] DPWH and Bases Conversion and Development Authority also outlined some
road [Link] included the Santa Monica-Lawton-Bonifacio Global City link bridge
(to decongest Edsa by 100,000 vehicles), the University of the Philippines-Miriam College-
Ateneo De Manila Viaduct, the Iloilo-Guimaras-Negros-Cebu Link Bridge and the Davao
City Bypass Construction [Link] Duterte team would also see the completion of two
Metro Manila tollroads linking North Luzon Expressway and South Luzon Expressway
during its term.32

These are the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 of SMC, which was started in 2014 and
would be finished by 2017 or 2018, and Metro Pacific’s connector road, which would be
finished by [Link] Pacific is also starting the Cavite Laguna Expressway this year,
31
ibid
32
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 18,September 2017], available from
<Railway-induced ground vibrations–a review of vehicle effects>
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 34

with completion seen by the end of 2019.

The government, meanwhile, said it would pursue a Bus Rapid Transit [Link]
September 2016, the board of the National Economic and Development Authority
approved the P38-billion Metro Manila BRT [Link] is a 48.6-km system covering
Monumento to Diosdado Macapagal Ave./Roxas Boulevard, with integrated routes
between the Ortigas Business District, Bonifacio Global City, and Makati Business
District.

The BRT has defining features, the core of which is a dedicated bus lane, with
specialized buses and stations. Buses, for example, would have the same height as station
platforms, speeding up the boarding and unloading [Link] BRT, which would occupy
Edsa’s center lanes, would replace buses in the yellow lanes on the rightmost lanes of the
major [Link] DOTr said the plan was expected to cut road congestion
significantly, and in a more cost-efficient manner, as the BRT has done in dozens of other
cities around the world. (A BRT project in Cebu is due for completion in 2019).The DOTr
also listed a cable car system project. Potential locations would be along Pasig River,
Boracay and [Link] infrastructure projects in the air sector are focused on
modernizing and expanding existing gateways. This included the P75-billion Ninoy Aquino
International Airport Public Private Partnership Project.

Approved by the Neda board in September, this PPP has yet to be officially rolled out to
participants, despite the high-level of interest from big [Link] is also the
P108-billion PPP deal to modernize, develop and operate the Bacolod-Silay, Iloilo, Davao,
Laguindingan, and New Bohol air [Link] current administration, in a surprise move,
decided to bid out the airports individually instead of in packages comprising several
airports—delaying the process further.33

33
Natural resource; [online] [cited 14 September 2017]; available from <[Link]
vision-and-mandate>
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 35

The DOTr also wants to modernize Clark International Airport, while relocating general
aviation services to either Clark or Sangley Point in Cavite. This would help decongest
Naia, which is now operating well beyond its intended [Link] the maritime sector, the
Philippine Ports Authority will scrap the P19-billion Davao Sasa modernization project.
Instead, it will pursue a down-scaled version worth about P4.9 [Link] administration is
likewise planning to revive the Pasig River Ferry Service and the broader roll-on, roll-off
service for inter-island travel around the country.A number of projects under the PPP
framework are slated for [Link] of Dec. 15, 2016, the PPP Center has outlined 38
projects in its pipeline, valued at P5.6 trillion. (The amount was mainly on account of the
reclamation component of the Manila Bay Integrated Flood Control and Expressway,
which is still under study). Thus far, none of the PPPs under procurement that were left
hanging by the Aquino administration have progressed during the Duterte
[Link] noted, delays or cancellations hit the regional airports PPP and Davao
[Link] are also waiting for developments on the LRT-2 operations and maintenance,
LRT-6, Road Transport Information Technology Project (Phase 2), New Centennial Water
Source-Kaliwa, and Regional Prison Facilities (a new penitentiary in Fort Magsaysay,
Nueva Ecija).A number of PPP projects remain under study.34

These included the NLEx East Expressway project, Manila East Rail System, the Sucat
Gas Power Plant and the rehabilitation of the National Center for Mental [Link] a
departure from the Aquino administration’s position, the President said his administration
was willing to consider unsolicited proposals from the private sector. The country’s largest
business groups are expected to come forward with new proposals, and many have already
done so in recent [Link] groups of businessman Wilson Tieng and taipan Henry Sy
Sr. are proposing to reclaim 2,500 hectares of land in offshore Sangley.

The P1.3 trillion project would then serve as the site for a new international airport,
seaport and industrial [Link], SMC is proposing a 2,000-hectare international

34
Natural resource; [online] [cited 14 September 2017]; available from <[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 36

airport project in Bulacan. Ayala Corp.’s infrastructure arm announced last year that it was
eyeing unsolicited infrastructure deals for Metro Manila.35

IDEOGRAM CHAPTER IV

Train system

35
Natural resource; mrt commuter stranded operation [online] [cited 14 September 2017]; available from
[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 37

PNR MRT LRT

Duterte
administrat
ion

DOTr= 1 more Capacity

trillion project and of the
train the slow passenger
project progress

V.
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 38

Metro Manila’s mass rail transit system, given its current dysfunction, gives the
impression that not much planning has gone into it. In offering a brief history of the plans
that predate the current railway lines, the paper dispels this notion. These plans include
those formulated by or through the assistance of the Japan International Cooperation
Agency (JICA), the World Bank and Australian Agency for International Development
(AusAID), and their predecessors. However, some of these plans were based on
assumptions which were not necessarily congruent. By utilizing parts of several plans and
not sticking to one plan, the overall fundamentals were thus negated, resulting in confusing
if not conflicting assumptions and infrastructure. The current Administration has identified
the NSRP South Line as a priority strategic transport investment. The Project is expected to
be the sole rail backbone connecting Metro Manila to currently underserved areas in
Southern Luzon. The entire NSRP, including both the North and South lines, has also been
identified by the World Bank as one of 15 key projects for ASEAN connectivity. The
NSRP South Line is deemed consistent with the 9 current Philippine Development Plan
2011–2016 that highlights the strategy for improving transport efficiencies and promoting
user-pay principles for operational service sustainability36

The Philippine Development Plan 2011-2016 (the “Development Plan”) has adopted a
framework of “inclusive growth”, which is defined as “high growth that is sustained,
generates mass employment, and reduces poverty”. This Development Plan serves as the
guiding principle in formulating policies and implementing development programs in the
Philippines for the years up to [Link] Development Plan identifies the lack of transport
infrastructure as one of the key constrain ts to overall growth of the country. Accordingly,
one of the key pillars of the Development Plan is to make large investments in
infrastructure. The Development Plan for physical infrastructure investment sets out the
creation of an integrated and multimodal national transport and logistics system as a
priority in order to better connect underserved but productive areas and communities to
36
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 14,September 2017], available from
<[Link]
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 39

markets and other social services. However, the government resource is not unlimited;
recognizing that GOP may not have sufficient funds to finance all vital infrastructures on
its own, the Development Plan seeks to utilize the PPP model in order to mobilize private
capital.37

The North-South Railway System

During its peak in the 1970s, the PNR mainline track ran from La Union Province in the
north to Legazpi City in the Bicol region for a total distance of 900 km. Today, the PNR's
only operations are commuter lines on the 56-km section from Tutuban in Manila to
Calamba in Laguna Province and on the 35-km section from Naga to Sipocot in the Bicol
region. The long distance passenger service from Manila to Legazpi Albay has been
suspended since October 2012 because of typhoon damage to bridges. Track, bridge, and
station infrastructure, however, remains largely in place from Tutuban to Legazpi, Albay.
As part of the GOP's efforts to promote inclusive growth and spur economic development
in underserved areas, the GOP seeks to rehabilitate and resume operations over the entire
system. The rehabilitation and development of the NSRP will consist of the NSRP North
Line and the NSRP South Line, and aims to revive a key portion of the national railway
network to provide rapid transport within major cities as well as long distance travel in
Luzon, the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Extensive rehabilitation and
reconstruction of track, roadbed, bridges, stations, depots and road crossings are needed to
bring the proposed line into safe operating conditions.38

37
Natural resource. [online]. [cited 14,September 2017], available from
<[Link]

38
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) (1976) The Feasibility Study for Manila Rapid Transit
Railway Line No.1 2 volumes. Manila: JICA. Japan International
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 40

The NSRP North Line

The North Line will connect Manila to north and northeastern provinces in Luzon. The
project comprises a 266km long-haul line from Manila to San Fernando City in La Union
Province, an extension from San Jose City in Nueva Ecija to Cagayan Province, and a
55km branch line from Tarlac Province to San Jose City. A 34km commuter line from
Tutuban to Malolos in Bulacan Province is also part of the [Link] first phase of the
North Line will be a commuter railway extending from Tutuban to Malolos, currently
being undertaken using funding from the Japan International Cooperation Agency. The
NSRP South Line The NSRP South Line, which is the subject of this PIM, is discussed in
further detail in succeeding [Link] NSRP South Linewill consist of commuter
railway operations between Tutuban and Calamba and long haul passenger railway
operations between Tutuban and Legazpi, as well as long haul passenger rail operations on
the branch line between Calamba and Batangas and extension between Legazpi and
Matnog.
The Project was developed with the intent to provide connectivity with Metro Manila's
existing urban rail systems including LRT-1, LRT-2, MRT-3, and others. The NSRP North
Line, LRT-2 west extension, Metro Manila Bus Rapid Transit, and the Integrated Transport
System – South Terminal (“ITS South”) in Food Terminal Incorporated (“FTI”) are
expected to connect with NSRP South Line, further enhancing access within and outside
Metro Manila

A quick look at Metro Manila’s traffic snarls and overcrowded mass rail transit systems
has led many a commuter to conclude that this chaotic situation was brought about by lack
of any concrete plans. The truth is, several plans to move people to their destinations in an
orderly fashion were drafted since the 1970s. Studying these plans shows that the current
situation is a result of modifying or combining elements of one or more plans. This paper
seeks to examine the major plans to provide Metro Manila with a functional mass rail
transit system, the proponents of the plans, basic assumptions embodied by these plans, and
how—or what portions—of the plans were carried out. It is but a preliminary paper,
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 41

preparatory to a fuller study of the history of planning and development of Metro Manila’s
mass transit. The idea of introducing a mass transit system in Metro Manila goes back over
a hundred years, when the Spaniards built and operated a streetcar system. Known
popularly as the tranvia, the first streetcars were horse drawn cars, later supplemented by
steam engines. During the American colonial period, the system was modernized with the
introduction of electric streetcars by the Manila Electric Rail and Light Company
(Meralco), connecting not just the business center of Manila with residential suburbs, but
also to outlying military camps (Fort McKinley) and nearby towns (Pasig). Competition
with bus lines, horse-drawn rigs, auto calesas (also known as jitneys) and taxis reduced
revenues, and Meralco added electric buses to their services. World War II destroyed the
streetcar totally, and Meralco decided that it was too expensive to restore the system.
Instead, buses, taxis and the post-war version of the jitney, the jeepney, took over the
streets (Snyder 1955). After World War II, the Philippine Bureau of Public Works, working
with the aid of the US Bureau of Public Works, planned to develop an organized system of
roads, forecasting new residential and trade centers, increasing numbers of vehicles and
people. These plans followed the American idea of using motor vehicles to bring people to
and from work and looked to suburban areas outside the main city limits (Philippine
Bureau of Public Works 1950). 39A variety of urban development plans were also
developed, aiming to shift the political center from Manila to Quezon City and remapping
the capital (Caoili 1999). As Manila grew to become a metropolis, traffic caused by the
increasing number of cars, buses and jeepneys became a fact of everyday life. A monorail
was considered in 1966 and a franchise awarded to the Philippine Monorail Transport
System (via Republic Act 4562). This franchise, however, expired with no actual work
done. Hindrances to long-term development planning for Metro Manila, including long-
term planning for urban transport, consist of the personal nature of the political leadership,
lack of continuity in national priorities owing to different presidential ambitions and styles,
and lack of sufficient funding to see major projects through (Caoili 1999). The bureaucracy

39
Philippine Highways: Highway Planning Survey; A Study of the Highway Transport System, Requirements and
Recommendations. Philippine Bureau of Public Works, Manila. Philippines, Republic.
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 42

and legal requirements also served to slow down major economic projects (Halcrow Group
Limited 2004). These weaknesses had been realized in the 1950s, and the National
Economic Development Authority (NEDA) was created in the 1970s to develop and
approve development plans beyond a particular presidential term. No other concrete plans
to build mass transport systems for Metro Manila, were drawn up, however, until 1973
after the conclusion of a 1971-1973 study that led to the Urban Transport Study in the
Manila Metropolitan Area (UTSMMA).40

1. UTSMMA
To draft the first plan, the Marcos administration sought the assistance of Japan, by
now an economic power in Asia with experience in successful rail and subway
transportation in its major cities. The Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency (OTCA),
the Japanese International Cooperation Agency's (JICA) predecessor, presented its
findings as the Urban Transport Study in the Manila Metropolitan Area (UTSMMA) in
1973. UTSMMA was a comprehensive transportation plan, including road and highway
development, the Philippine National Railways (PNR) and an ambitious subway/elevated
rail system, which would link the cities in the metropolis and decongest the city center by
developing then sparsely populated areas near Manila. A system of circumferential roads
was planned, some of which were implemented, such as C-5. The subway plan envisaged
five lines: Line 1 (27.1 kms. long) connected Constitution Hill in Quezon City in the
northeast to Talon, Las Piñas to the south of Manila proper. This, the main line, would
pass through central Quezon City (Quezon Boulevard), pass the main school district in
downtown Manila, through the business centers, port areas and on to the International
Airport. Line 2 (36.0 km as planned) linked Novaliches in Quezon City with Cainta in
Rizal Province, again passing through downtown Manila. Line 3 (24.3 kms. long) would
service the circumferential road known as Highway 54 (now known as Epifanio de los
Santos Avenue; also designated C-4). Line No. 4 (30.1 kms. long) connected Marikina
40
ibid
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 43

and Zapote through Cubao in Quezon City to Manila and Pasay City. Line No. 5 (17.6
kms. long) moved north out of Quezon City and downtown Manila to Meycauayan in
Bulacan. The PNR trains would be modernized, portions of the system, would be
elevated rail so as not to further clog the main roads; as an integrated part of Manila’s
mass rail transit, it would serve additional towns outside Manila proper not serviced by
the five subway lines (OTCA 1973).41

The UTSMMA proposed a long-term, rational solution to Metro Manila’s traffic

problems, and would have taken 15 years to complete. UTSMMA may well have solved
Manila’s traffic ills for many years to come, and opened up many potential business and
residential centers outside of central Manila, including Marikina and Cainta in Rizal, and
Marilao and Meycauayan in Bulacan. Many of recommendations for the roads and
development of the PNR lines were adopted, although would take time to carry out. Had
the entire plan been carried out— including the subways—it would be finished in 1988.
As with many such plans, pragmatic considerations—mainly cost—were made, such that
the subway component was not carried out. Apart from the extensive work required to
dig tunnels and underground rail lines, land rights would have to be paid for and heavy
rail cars would have to be acquired. Portions of the road plan and a modified version of
Line 1 —significantly shortened—would be carried out. But this line would be
implemented under a new plan, based on a very different set of assumptions.42

2. MMETROPLAN

Instead of fully implementing UTSMMA, the Marcos administration instead

commissioned the drafting of another plan, the Metro Manila Transport, Land Use and
41

“Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency (OTCA) “.:Ateneo De Manila Univesity Press, Quezon
City.1973.

42
Department of Public Works, Transportation and Communications, and Freeman, Fox and Associates
,1977.
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 44

Development Planning Project or the MMETROPLAN. The study, conducted from 1976
to 1977, was funded by the World Bank, which in turn contracted the services of
Freeman, Fox and Associates, working closely with ranking government officials. It was
meant not only to address the traffic needs of Metro Manila, but also to complement First
Lady Imelda Marcos’ ideas of the “City of Man,” 'an environment within which man can
develop his full potential, where any man can live fully, happily and with dignity'"
(Nells-Lim, cited in Lico, 2003). Mrs. Marcos was at this time Chair of the Metro Manila
Commission. MMETROPLAN disagreed with several of the assumptions and proposals
of UTSMMA. For one, Freeman, Fox—and the World Bank—did not feel that the heavy
rail transit advocated by the Japanese was suitable to Manila’s conditions. “It would be
hopelessly uneconomic,” they concluded, arguing against any form of segregated mass
transit system.

Neither would upgrading PNR’s lines be cost effective (a sign of bias against the
railroad); and MMETROPLAN advised against opening up the Marikina and Cainta
areas as these would be prone to flooding (it recommended developing the Tandang
Sora/Commonwealth Avenue and Parañaque/Sucat areas). MMETROPLAN, in fact,
openly criticized UTSMMA. Instead, MMETROPLAN proposed the continued use of
buses and jeepneys as a cheaper alternative. Freeman, Fox conceded that mass transit
would be useful, and recommended that four lines be developed. These lines would be
Light Rail Transit (LRT) lines, similar to the LRT system in Europe, which were
modernized, rapid streetcars that ran on road level. They were not segregated from motor
transport and followed traffic lights along with cars and buses. The MMETROPLAN
lines radiated out of central Manila to the north (to Monumento, through Rizal Avenue),
northeast (to Quezon City, through Espana/Quezon Boulevard), southeast (to San Juan
and Mandaluyong, via Shaw Boulevard) and south (to Makati and Pasay, via Taft
Avenue, stopping just short of the airport), with a loop line serving the central area,
including the ports and main business district.43
43
MMETROPLAN 1977) “Metro Manila Transport, Land Use and Development Planning Project”: Final
Report. 1977. Quezon City : MMETROPLAN.
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 45

3. The Present Metro Manila Railway Line

Planning and construction of further mass rail lines was delayed by the decline of the
Marcos administration’s fortunes after the assassination of Ninoy Aquino in August
1983 (just as LRT- 1 was nearing completion). Marcos’ ouster in February 1986 and
the assumption of the presidency by Corazon Aquino temporarily halted any plans and
projects, but by 1988 plans were underway once more. An initial feasibility study for
LRT-2 (which would connect the Marikina Valley with downtown Manila via Aurora
and Magsaysay Boulevards and C.M. Recto Avenue) was carried out in 1988. The
Aquino administration bundled LRT-1 extension with the new LRT-2 line and bid out
the project as a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) scheme, under the newly signed BOT
law. But the bidding failed, and the project hibernated for two years. It was
resuscitated in 1991, when additional sources of funding were available. Before any
bidding could be held, Mrs. Aquino’s term ended, and Gen. Fidel V. Ramos took over
the reins of government. Ramos was determined to see the LRT-2 to fruition and made
it one of his flagship projects. This time it was bid out as a stand-alone project,
separate from the LRT-1 expansion plan. Construction began in 1996, but delays were
experienced due to legal challenges and reports of irregularities in the bidding. These
were eventually cleared and construction resumed in 2000. By this time there was a
new president, Joseph Estrada. Construction of LRT-2 faced unexpected difficulties,
legal and otherwise, causing delay. Compromises had to be made and alterations to the
original plan in terms of station locations, actual route (due to land issues) and
problems in planning and decision making (Halcrow Group Limited 2004; Kawabata
2009). Before LRT-2 could be completed, Estrada would be ousted from power and it
was thus his constitutional successor, Vice President Gloria MacapagalArroyo, who
was the president who inaugurated the first phase of LRT-2 in April 2003. The line
was fully operational by October 2004 (Halcrow Group Limited, 2004). Figure 4
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 46

shows a map presenting the evolution of proposed and existing rail lines in Metro
Manila.

CONCLUSION

There have been several plans to develop a mass rail transit for Metro Manila actually
there are 9 current Philippine Development Plan 2011–2016 that highlights the strategy for
improving transport efficiencies and promoting user-pay principles for operational service
sustainability

However, some of these plans were based on assumptions which were not necessarily
congruent. By utilizing parts of several plans and not sticking to one plan, the overall
fundamentals were thus negated, resulting in confusing if not conflicting assumptions and
infrastructure. The three lines are not integrated, and swerved from the original designs due
to a variety of factors. One analysis noted that the “strategies are [developed, but are] not
always implemented or effective” (Halcrow Group Limited, 2004). Plans were influenced
by people and events. The plans also reflected the thinking of the framers, and later
planners criticized or disagreed with the basic lines of previous studies. Making things
more complicated were pragmatic—particularly cost—considerations, political will and the
possible influence of funding and construction agencies44

Ideogram of conclusion

The struggles on
the development
of the train
44 systems and The
Philippines, Republic. Ministry of Transportation and Communications, with Electrowatt
actions
Engineering Services (1980) “Metro of Light
Manila the Rail Transit Network Extension Inception”
Report., December 1980. government
 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 47

The the actions of the

the struggles of
government for
development of the development
the slow
of the train
the train system development of
system
the train systems
becomes the
struggle
inPhilippines?

The slow
The progress
struggle of the
of the project
commut
er

VI
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 STO. NIÑO CATHOLIC SCHOOL, INC. 48

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