PH, Japan sign Exchange of Notes for North-South Commuter Railway

The Philippines and Japan the other day (November 21, 2018) signed the Exchange of Notes for the 109-kilometer, North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Extension, which is part of the P777.55- billion, 147-km. NSCR System Project.

Earlier this month, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) board approved the NSCR Extension.

Previously divided into three different projects, the NSCR System will seamlessly integrate the 38-km. PNR Clark 1 from Tutuban to Malolos, the 53-km. PNR Clark 2 from Malolos to Clark International Airport, and the 56-km. PNR Calamba from Solis to Calamba.

The NSCR System consists of 36 stations, 58 8-car trains – inclusive of 7 Airport Express trains, and a double-track fully elevated railway system that will connect Region III (Central Luzon), the National Capital Region (NCR), and Region IV-A (CALABARZON).

It will have seamless transfer stations with LRT-1, LRT-2, and MRT-3, as well as with the upcoming Metro Manila Subway.

When the system partially opens in 2022, it is expected to have a ridership of 340,000 passengers per day, increasing to 550,000 passengers per day when it becomes fully operational in 2023.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are co-financing the NSCR Extension Project.

It will be ADB’s its largest loan to a single project, almost double its current largest project loan.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. and H.E. Ambassador of Japan to the Philippines Koji Haneda signed the Exchange of Notes for the extension project during the 6th Meeting of the Philippines-Japan High Level Joint Committee on Infrastructure Development and Economic Cooperation.

The signing was witnessed by several Cabinet Secretaries for the Philippines side, and by Dr. Hiroto Izumi, Special Adviser to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and Mr. Shigeru Kiyama, Special Adviser to the Cabinet of Japan, for the Japan side.

https://business.mb.com.ph/2018/11/22/ph-japan-sign-exchange-of-notes-for-north-south-commuter-railway/