LRT moves southward

For the highly successful Light Rail Transit (LRT), the next stop is Bacoor.

By year 2004, the LRT Line 1 Extension Project is expected to bring about significant social and economic benefits to some 1.9 million residents of Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas and the province of Cavite.

The project, a 12-kilometer rail system operating on elevated guideways, utilizes technology compatible with that of the existing LRT Line 1 from Monumento to Baclaran. It will consist of eight passenger stations and two future stations, as well as a satellite depot.

Construction of the first phase will commence by the last quarter of 2001 and will be completed by 2004.

Intermodal stations will include a passenger interchange between buses and jeepneys. It will have passenger pickup and drop off areas, bus and jeepney parking and pedestrian walkways to and from station entrances.

The automated fare collection system will likewise be compatible with the swipe card system being put in place for the existing LRT line.

Ridership on the extension line is expected to be 85 percent of that of LRT 1, which is currently at 400,000 passengers a day.

Integration with the existing line is a key factor in the success of the system, forming a continuous line where passengers do not have to get off from Baclaran in order to get to the extension.

To date, the project has been approved by the Investment Coordinating Committee and the GCMCC which paved the way for the signing of the joint venture agreement between the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) and its Canadian partner, SNC-Lavalin International.

Since the signing of the agreement, work has begun in the area of advance engineering, preparation for right of way acquisition, resettlement and utility relocation.

The implementation scheme involved, commonly called as public-private program, is an innovative approach in building a mass transit project.

The scheme optimizes private sector resources and minimizes government exposure to cover only the civil works portion of the project. It also allows accelerated completion of less than four years, thereby transferring the completion risk to the private sector.

As a part of its commitment to community service, the LRT Line 1 Extension Project will undertake the dredging of the Parañaque river where the alignment will pass. The dredging is expected to deepen the river, improve its flow and remove garbage and will also implement a resettlement program in coordination with the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council to relocate squatter families living along the river and other affected areas.