Railway projects pushed

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) has revealed a plan to fully develop a "rational and viable" railway system not only in the metropolis but also in the adjoining suburban areas.

The integration of the various projects is now in the pipeline to complement the two existing lines – LRT Line 1 which runs from Baclaran to Monumento along Taft Avenue and the EDSA MRT 3 which runs along EDSA from North Avenue in Quezon City to Taft Avenue in Pasay City.

At Malacañang, President Arroyo led ceremonies for the signing of financial documents for the rehabilitation and expansion of the North Luzon Expressway that could boost the industrial development of Central Luzon and the Clark Special Economic Zone.

The Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) project, funded by $117.5 million equity and $253.5 million in foreign loans, will pave the way for the building of a world-class toll road linking Metro Manila to Sta. Ines in Mabalacat, Pampanga.

Transportation and Communications Secretary Pantaleon Alvarez said the projects, which would bring about convenience and easier mobility, would also spur the economic activity even at the fringes of urban areas.

The project involving the extension of Line 1 is a 12-kilometer span of elevated guideway southward from the cities of Parañaque, Las Piñas and Muntinlupa, and the adjoining municipalities of Bacoor, Imus and Dasmariñas in Cavite province.

The project is a joint venture of the Light Rail Transit Authority/DOTC and the Canadian company of SNC Lavalin.

The NEDA approved the project in July 1999 and the joint venture agreement was signed by the parties. Identification of affected properties and notices to owners are now under way even as the Implementation Agreement is being finalized.

The EDSA MRT 3 Phase 2 is another project in the works. This would connect North Avenue Station of the MRT 3 to Monumento Terminal of LRT Line-1, thus completing the loop.

The project is a five-kilometer westward extension of EDSA MRT which would be bid out under a Build-Transfer scheme. Three more stations would be added, namely; Roosevelt, Balintawak, and the connecting station to Monumento.

MRT Line 4 is another DOTC project which would traverse the southwest-northeast corridor of Metro Manila. It has two phases that, when completed, would run the whole length from Recto Avenue in Manila, España, Quezon Ave. and Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City to Quirino Avenue in Lagro, Novaliches.

The DOTC received an unsolicited proposal on a BT-BOO scheme from interested investors which passed the initial evaluation of the NEDA.

The proponent has been required to submit a firm financial package for the project. Other investors, both foreign and local, have likewise expressed interest in this project.

Meanwhile, the Department of Finance said yesterday there was no need for the Lopez-led MNTC to secure a government guarantee of its Asian Development Bank and International Finance Corp.-funded $370-million North Luzon Expressway rehabilitation and expansion project.

Finance Secretary Jose Isidro Camacho said government told creditors of MNTC the request for a performance or a risk undertaking for the project is no longer necessary. Other finance officials said the other terms of the contract between MNTC and its creditors already provided for adequate guarantees.

"We do not think it was necessary to grant the performance undertaking. Also, the request was not part of the Supplemental Toll Operating Agreement," Camacho said.

He said the project is the first toll road to be funded under a limited recourse project financing structure without government guarantee. — Marichu Villanueva, Rocel Felix