A segment of the long-haul railway line that will link Metro Manila to Bicol province is expected to be partially operable by April next year, according to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

This covers the San Pablo, Lucena to Pagbilao, Quezon segment of the P151 billion PNR Bicol.

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the 560-kilometer long railway line is targeted to be fully operational by 2025.

Upon its completion, the PNR Bicol railway line will traverse from Sucat, Parañaque in Metro Manila to Matnog in Sorsogon, and
from Calamba to Batangas.

It is expected to cut travel time between Manila and Legazpi from 14-18 hours to just 6 hours with regular commuter trains and 4.5 hours with express trains.

The project is seen to create around 25,000 jobs during construction phase plus 10,000 more jobs upon full operations.

The P150-billion PNR Clark Phase 2 (Malolos to Clark segment) recorded an overall progress rate of 32 percent as of July, while the P106-billion PNR Clark Phase 1 (Tutuban to Malolos segment), reached a 48-percent completion rate.

The two projects are part of the massive 147-km NSCR line, which will have 35 stations and operate 464 train cars, with 58 eight-car train sets configuration.

The NSCR system is the single largest infrastructure project funded by the Asian Development Bank and is the longest greenfield commuter railway project to be financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

The post PNR Bicol on track to start partial operations by April 2022 first appeared on Bilyonaryo Business News.



PNR Bicol on track to start partial operations by April 2022
Source: Filipino Daily Inquirer