https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/fact-check/243130-pnr-bicol-express-reopened-september< Edited >
The Bicol Express, a passenger train service that plies the Manila-Bicol route, remains suspended as of October 2019. The PNR has not made any official statement announcing the resumption of operations for the route.
In a text message to Rappler, PNR General Manager Junn Magno said, “Bicol Express is still under study if we can operate it while South Long Haul is under construction.”
PNR, according to Magno, is targeting to launch its partial operations by 2021.
South Long Haul Railway is one of the 6 new railway projects under the Build, Build, Build program.
At present, only the Bicol commuter train for the
Naga City-Sipocot route in Camarines Sur is available to the public.
The Bicol Express was suspended to rebuild its old line, according to Magno. They also aim to improve the travel speed from 40 to 60 kilometers per hour (kph) to 160 kph. He expects that, after rehabilitation, travel time will be shortened for the Manila-Naga trip by 3 hours and Manila-Legazpi by 4 hours (READ: Train of thought).
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