LRT-1 upgrades signaling system

MANILA, Philippines — The Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) is set to transfer the Light Rail Transit Line 1 to a new signaling system, which will require suspension of LRT-1 operations.

LRT-1 operations will be suspended on Nov. 28 and Jan. 23 and 30, 2022 to finish the works necessary for the upgrade of the existing signaling system.

LRMC and its contractor are scheduled to perform a series of test runs along the rail system to confirm the readiness of the new signaling system.

Railway signaling is a system used to direct railway traffic and keep trains clear of each other at all times to ensure smooth and safe operations.

LRMC is upgrading the LRT-1 to the new Alstom signaling system to accommodate the commercial use of the fourth generation train sets on the existing system.

LRT-1’s newest trains are set to be deployed by the middle of next year once they complete safety checks, inspections and required test runs.

“We look forward to the developments lined up for the LRT-1 in 2022. The migration to the new signaling system underscores LRMC’s commitment in modernizing the railway system and delivering better service to our customers,” LRMC chief operating officer Enrico Benipayo said.

“We would like to request the understanding of our passengers for the temporary inconvenience, and would like to assure them that this will be beneficial in the long run,” Benipayo added.

LRMC has been receiving fourth generation train sets in batches since the arrival of the first train set in Manila last January.

Each Gen-4 train set consists of four light rail vehicles (LRV) with a total capacity of 1,300 passengers per trip.

A total of 30 train sets or 120 LRVs from Spain and Mexico are scheduled for delivery until June next year to be used for the existing LRT-1 system, as well as the upcoming Cavite Extension project.

LRMC, a consortium composed of MPIC’s Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp., Ayala’s AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp. and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings PTE Ltd., took over the management of the rail system in 2015.