THE Economy and Development Council has approved the P229.32-billion operations and maintenance (O&M) contract for the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project.
The council, chaired by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., issued the decision at its July 15 meeting, the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) said in a statement on Wednesday.
The 147-kilometer elevated railway line seeks to ease travel across three regions Central Luzon, Metro Manila, and Calabarzon — composed of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon.
“The North-South Commuter Railway Project is a major step toward faster, greener, and more connected transportation as the system will also be integrated with the Metro Manila Subway. At the same time, it will promote green and commercial development along its corridors,” Economy Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said.
DEPDev said the railway will have 35 stations, including 31 elevated, three at-grade, and one underground.
Depots will be located in Clark, Valenzuela, and Calamba to support maintenance and operations, it said.
The project provides two types of train services.
The commuter line has 51 trainsets, each with a passenger capacity of 2,242. The Limited Express service will have seven trainsets of 386 passengers each.
These services are meant to improve travel speeds, with trains operating at 120 to 130 kilometers per hour, exceeding the current average commuter rail speeds of 20 to 40 kilometers per hour.
In addition, the DEPDev said the pre-operations phase of the project will run between March 2026 and July 2027.
“The concession period for the partial operations of Phase 1, which stretches from Clark International Airport (CIA) to Valenzuela (13 stations), will commence in December 2027 and continue until September 2028,” it said.
The concession period for the partial operations of Phase 2, which extends service to Nichols with an additional segment from Alabang to Calamba, will run between October 2028 and December 2031.
Full operations are anticipated to start in January 2032.
At the same meeting, DEPDev kicked off the updating process of its mid-term progress assessment ahead of the necessary adjustments to targets and interventions.
“We have learned a lot of lessons from our past experiences and many of these have been reflected in our recent efforts. We will continue to stay on course to sustain our momentum for the second half of this administration,” Mr. Balisacan said.
DEPDev will solicit comments from the various agencies before finalizing the updated plan, which will be issued by the end of July. — Aubrey Rose A. Inosante