LRT-1 tracks up for repair

MANILA, Philippines — The Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) will undergo rail replacement activities at its southernmost station for five days, prolonging the wait time of passengers until Sept. 24, the Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) said in an advisory yesterday.

The activity forms part of LRMC’s program to upgrade the railway that it operates and maintains through a concession agreement with the government.

LRMC chief operating officer Rolando Paulino III said the replacement will require the operator to close a portion of the reversing tracks in the LRT-1’s Baclaran station. This ensures that the engineering team can conduct the activity efficiently and safely.

However, the closure also means that LRMC has to limit train deployment and train movements, which will extend the headway, or the interval in the arrival of trains, to five minutes.

Paulino said LRMC will keep on increasing the number of Generation 4 trains running in LRT-1 given that these units run at a faster speed and can carry more passengers per trip.

He said LRT-1 operations should normalize by Sept. 25. For the meantime, commuters are advised to plan their trips ahead with prolonged wait time expected at the stations.

In July, LRMC began deploying the red livery Gen 4 trains in LRT-1. These trains can run up to 70 kilometers per hour and transport almost 1,400 people per trip. LRMC hopes to operate as many as 30 of them in the first quarter of 2024.

Apart from this, LRMC is adding eight stations to LRT-1 to cover as far as Bacoor, Cavite, with the first segment of the expansion scheduled to be opened by September 2024.