LRMC starts installing new rails on LRT Line 1

LIGHT Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) on Wednesday said it started installing new rails on the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) tracks from Baclaran to 5th Avenue stations.

In a statement, LRMC said the rail replacement project is the final phase of the rehabilitation of the 32-year-old train line.

Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA), the previous operator, had completed the first phase of rail replacements along the southbound route in December 2015.

“This is also good news for those living in close proximity to the stations as these new set of rails will notably decrease vibrations and lessen noise levels coming from the trains,” LRMC Engineering Director Rudy Chansuyco was quoted as saying in the statement.

The company said the rail replacement project covers 21 kilometers on the northbound route and five kilometers on the southbound route.

LRMC, the consortium of Ayala Corp., Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp., and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Pte. Ltd., said the completion of the rehabilitation will increase light rail vehicles’ maximum speed to 60 kilometers per hour (kph) from its current 40 kph.

This is also expected to expand the trains’ lifespan, significantly improve the efficiency of the whole train system, and “avoid wear and tear of the rolling stock,” LRMC said.

LRMC bagged the P64.9-billion LRT-1 Cavite Extension public-private partnership project, which will extend the train line from Baclaran to Bacoor, Cavite. It involves rehabilitation of the existing 21-kilometer (km) line and an 11.7-km extension from Baclaran to Bacoor, Cavite.

Construction of the LRT Cavite extension project was slated to start last year, but has been hampered by right-of-way issues.

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