Philippine National Railways

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Department of Transportation - Philippines
February 21 at 12:25 AM

https://www.facebook.com/DOTrPH/posts/1307554922716974

LOOK: Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines HE Koji Haneda and Ambassador of Philippines to Japan HE Jose C. Laurel V signed the grant agreement worth an estimated JPY1.2 billion for the train simulators of the Philippine Railways Institute.

The first-ever Philippine Railways Institute (PRI) is envisioned to become a training institution and licensing body, which will ensure that all individuals who will operate and maintain the trains, as well as other personnel involved in its operations, will have the necessary skills, qualifications, and service-oriented mindset.

The grant is one of the five documents signed after the Philippine-Japan High-Level Meeting today.

The signing was witnessed by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and Japanese Special Advisor to the Prime Minister Hiroto Izumiz.

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The following site shared the following travel schedule for the Bicol Express back in 2011

https://philpad.com/bicol-express-pnr-train-fare-schedules-and-review/

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Gov't to create Philippine Railway Institute
Published July 3, 2017 10:17am
By JON VIKTOR D. CABUENAS, GMA News

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/money/content/616663/gov-t-to-create-philippine-railway-institute/story/

The government is now in the initial stages of creating a Philippine Railway Institute which will serve as a training center for employees of public railways, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said Monday.

"I'm talking with JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) right now to put up a Philippine Railway Institute," Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade said before the Philippine Transport Forum in Pasig City.

According to Tugade, the government is looking at the Philippine Railway Institute as a training center for employees of public railways in the country.

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https://www.facebook.com/DOTrPH/photos/pcb.1517065581765906/1517083101764154/

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127th anniversary of the Philippine National Railways: November 24, 2019.

Photo c/o: Philippine Railway Historical Society (PRHS)

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https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/239702-new-railways-to-look-out-for

How much are each of these railway projects worth, and what is their status so far?

1. North-South Commuter Railway System (NSCR)

National expenditure program (NEP) 2020 allocation: P84.7 billion
Total project cost: P777.55 billion
Source of funding: Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and ADB
Construction timeline: Partial operations by 2021, full operations by 2023
Capacity: 350,000 passengers daily
Status: 3 civil works contract packages opened for bidding in August

The 147-kilometer, 37-station mass transportation system aims to bridge Central Luzon, Metro Manila, and Southern Luzon by integrating Philippine National Railway (PNR) Clark 1, PNR Clark 2, and PNR Calamba. It is expected to shorten travel time from North Avenue to Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 to 45 minutes.

The railway will also link the Light Rail Transit (LRT) lines 1 and 2, the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) line 3, and the forthcoming Metro Manila Subway.

It is the biggest project under the 'Build, Build, Build' program. (READ: Philippines, Japan sign $1.54-billion loan deal on North-South Railway)

2. Metro Manila Subway Project

NEP 2020 allocation: P9.8 billion
Total project cost: P356.96 billion
Source of funding: ODA
Construction timeline: Partial operations by the 2nd quarter of 2022, main line completion by the 3rd quarter of 2025
Capacity: 365,000 passengers daily
Status: Groundbreaking ceremony was held last February

The 35-kilometer underground railway will span Valenzuela City to Parañaque, with a connection to NAIA Terminal 3.

By 2022, 3 stations are expected to be in operation, namely the Mindanao Avenue-Quirino Highway, Tandang Sora, and North Avenue stations.

By 2025, 15 stations will be operational, connecting Quirino Highway to NAIA Terminal 3 and cutting travel time down to half an hour with the trains running up to 80 km/h.


3. MRT3 Rehabilitation Project

NEP 2020 allocation: P5 billion
Total project cost: P21.97 billion
Source of funding: ODA
Construction timeline: Completion by December 2022
Capacity: 650,000 passengers daily
Status: Ongoing procurement of supervision consultant

The rehabilitation project will cover restoration of assets including light rail vehicles, tracks, signaling system, overhead catenary system (OCS), communications sytem, and depot and station equipment. It will also undergo a 43-month maintenance period, which already started in May 2019 and will end in November 2022.

The MRT3 has deteriorated and runs at a slower operating speed – from 60 km/h to 30 km/h – and increased gaps between trains from 3.5 minutes to 7.5-10 minutes.

The deterioration was blamed on the "compounded effect of neglect, bad maintenance practices, and failure to undertake scheduled overhaul and upgrading works" by the previous maintenance provider. This prompted the DOTr-MRT3 to enact a comprehensive rehabilitation, repair, and restoration of MRT3.

4. Mindanao Railway Project

NEP 2020 allocation: P97 million
Total project cost: P82.9 billion (a 130% increase)
Source of funding: China ODA
Construction timeline: Start by the 1st quarter of 2020, target opening by the 4th quarter of 2022
Capacity: 110,000 passengers
Status: Ongoing pre-construction works and environmental impact assessment


The project targets reduced travel time from Tagum City, Davao del Norte to Digos City, Davao del Sur from 3 hours to one hour.

The 3 cities of Tagum, Davao, and Digos entered into a memorandum of agreement with P5.6 billion allocated to the acquisition of properties and administrative costs.

Its project cost jumped from P35.9 billion to P82.9 billion in July to cover changes in the cost of construction works and the addition of a satellite post in Davao City.

5. PNR South Long Haul

NEP 2020 allocation: P877 million
Total project cost: P175.32 billion
Source of funding: China ODA
Construction timeline: Start by 4th quarter of 2019, partial operations by 2nd quarter of 2022
Capacity: 100,000 passengers
Status: Establishing control points

The 639-kilometer line will connect Metro Manila to the Southern Luzon provinces, shortening travel time from 12 hours via car to only 6 hours.

A loan agreement for the railway's project management consultancy was signed during the bilateral meeting between President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping last August 29.

The PNR was earlier flagged for illegally using the funds for the PNR South Long Haul Railway to pay for security services costs incurred in 2017. The current organization of the PNR drew flak for its inefficiency and mismanagement. (READ: COA raises red flags over PNR 'illegal use' of funds)

6. LRT1 Cavite Extension

NEP 2020 allocation: P74 million
Total project cost: P64.9 billion
Source of funding: Public-private partnership for civil works and electromechanical system, Japan ODA for light rail vehicles and depot
Construction timeline: Partial operability by 4th quarter of 2021, completion by 2022
Capacity: 300,000 to 500,000 passengers daily
Status: Ongoing piling works since September 1

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Following provides interesting insights into why the PNR deteriorated

https://www.jica.go.jp/english/our_work/evaluation/oda_loan/post/2001/pdf/e_project_46_all.pdf

2.5. Sustainability

PNR liabilities have continuously exceeded its assets since 1995, and the financial situation of the organization has been deteriorating steadily. One of the main reasons for the deficits is the large share of costs occupied by personnel expenses. The Philippine government has also reduced its subsidies to PNR and has requested the organization to slim down its operations. In fiscal 1999, personnel expenses accounted for over 85% of operating costs, and even in terms of the absolute amount, it was not possible to finance these expenses using operating profits. As mentioned above, budgetary shortfalls have led to shortages in spare parts and so on (Table 5 below).

In 1996, PNR had a total of 2,338 employees, but this number dropped steadily in the four years thereafter, and in August 2000 stood at 1,978. As of January 2001, the Rolling Stock Maintenance Department (RSMD), which is responsible for the maintenance of rolling stock, employed 394 people (21 managers, 38 engineers, 332 skilled workers, and 3 unskilled workers). Of this number, 77 people (against the
planned level of 60) are currently employed at the rolling stock maintenance depot that was newly constructed using ODA loan funds, 35 of whom are actually positioned in the department.

Since PNR is not hiring new staff, aging is advancing among personnel and many employees are in their forties and fifties. Given the fact that inspection and maintenance operations are not being conducted according to schedule, PNR has responded that it has secured sufficient employees in quantitative terms, however, it indicates qualitative problems, particularly among engineering staff. It is
also reported that insufficient training is giving rise to problems in that workers are not proficient in the operating methods of some of the inspection and maintenance equipment installed at the rolling stock maintenance depot. There are concerns about the sustainability of the project in light of the current circumstances within PNR including its deteriorating finances, the aging of personnel and the maintenance of skills levels.

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https://www.jica.go.jp/philippine/english/office/others/c8h0vm0000d3hsdw-att/report_2017.pdf

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https://www.facebook.com/jicaphilippines/posts/440892463248013

See photos of the construction activities of the JICA-assisted North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Project. Once completed, the NSCR will ease commuting time from Malolos, Bulacan to Tutuban, Manila to 35 minutes from today’s 2-hour commute.

Photos courtesy of Sumitomo Mitsui Construction Co., Ltd.