DOTC says single MRT-LRT ticket to start Q3 of 2015

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) expects the single ticketing system for the Metro Rail Transit 3 (MRT3) and the Light Rail Transit (LRT) lines 1 and 2 to be operational by the third quarter of 2015.

In a statement, DOTC spokesman Michael Arthur Sagcal, said that the submission of bids for the P1.72-billion Automatic Fare Collection System (AFCS) project would push through on Monday.

Sagcal said the DOTC aims to award the contract February next year and full implementation of the public private partnership (PPP) project is on the third quarter of 2015.

“With only a few days to go before bid submission, our sense is that all five prequalified groups are still very much in the running. From what we understand, if all groups submit on Monday, this could be the highest number of bidders for a PPP project so far,” he added.

According to him, the winning consortium has the option to expand the contactless card system to other businesses in and out of the transportation sector such as in retail transactions.

The MRT-LRT single ticket is envisioned to be like Hong Kong’s Octopus Card, which serves as a debit card, aside from being a stored-value train ticket. The single ticket could also be used for other modes of transportation such as buses, paying toll, electronic banking, and even shopping.

The AFCS project would bring important benefits to the more than one million daily passengers using the light rail lines ensuring seamless interconnection for travelers and removing the current inconvenience of the need to buy separate tickets for separate lines.

It would allow the operating authorities to develop a service offering that better suit the needs of the passengers through a system similar to Hong Kong, London, the Netherlands, and other countries.