THE Philippines Department of Transportation (DOTr) has selected a joint venture comprising Dohwa Engineering of Korea and Nippon Koei of Japan as preferred bidder for an $US 11.98m contract to conduct studies for Greater Capital Region Railways, a project to connect metro and commuter lines under construction or operational in Manila.
Contract award is subject to approval by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Tendering must comply with the bank’s procurement guidelines for projects funded with official development assistance (ODA) loans.
As well as Manila’s existing LRT and MRT lines, Greater Capital Region Railways would connect new lines at the project stage or now under construction, including Metro Manila Subway, the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR), MRT-4 and the Subic - Clark - Manila - Batangas (SCMB) Railway.
As of last month, DOTr had acquired of 90.76% of the right of way and property required to build Metro Manila Subway. It will run for 33km from Valenzuela City to FTI-Bicutan in Parañaque City, with a branch to serve Terminal 3 of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City.
The new underground metro line will serve 17 stations with capacity to carry up to 370,000 passengers a day.
On the NSCR project, DOTr reports that 56% of the northern section has been cleared and is now ready for construction to begin. When fully operational, the 148km NSCR will serve 37 stations and its fleet of 464 EMU cars is expected to carry over 800,000 passengers a day.
The first section between Clark and Valenzuela is expected to open by 2028. The project is being delivered in three sections: Tutuban - Malolos, Malolos - Clark, and Solis - Calamba.
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