Commuter rail

A PNR Hyundai Rotem DMU used for the Metro Commuter Line at Blumentritt stationMain articles: Philippine National Railways and Philippine National Railways Metro Commuter Line

The Philippine National Railways is a state-owned railway system in the Philippines, organized under the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) as an attached agency. Established during the Spanish colonial period, the modern PNR was developed only in 1984. It formerly operated around 479 kilometres of track on the island of Luzon, where most Philippine rail infrastructure is located. Because of this, PNR has become synonymous with the Philippine rail system.

A portion of the PNR network, specifically the Metro Manila portion of the network called as the Metro Commuter Line, is part of the Strong Republic Transit System (SRTS),[15] and overall public transport system in the metropolis. It forms the backbone of all of Metro Manila's regional rail services, which extend to its suburbs and to provinces such as Laguna. However, other than reducing growing traffic congestion due to the rising number of motor vehicles in Metro Manila,[16] PNR also aims to link key cities within the Philippines efficiently and to serve as an instrument in national socio-economic development.[17]

However, the meeting of that goal has been beset with problems regarding degraded infrastructure and a lack of government funding,[18] problems that are being rectified with current rehabilitation efforts. The rehabilitation of PNR, which has been touted by various administrations, seeks to not only tackle those problems, but also to spur Philippine economic growth through an efficient railway system. In 2007 the Philippine government initiated a rehabilitation project aiming to remove informal settlers from the PNR right-of-way, revitalize commuter services in Metro Manila, and restore the Manila-Bicol route as well as lost services in Northern Luzon. In July 2009, PNR unveiled a new corporate identity and inaugurated new

rolling stock.[19]

Rapid transit

LRTA System

Main articles: Manila Light Rail Transit System, Manila Light Rail Transit System Line 1 and Manila Light Rail Transit System Line 2

An LRT-1 train of the LRTA System at the Blumentritt Station

A MRT-2 train at the platform of the J. Ruiz Station

A MRT-3 train at the platform of the North Avenue Station

UP Diliman AGT

The Manila Light Rail Transit System is the main metropolitan rail system serving the Metro Manila area of the Philippines. There are two lines to the system: LRT-1, called the Yellow Line, and MRT-2, called the Purple Line. Although the system is referred to as a "light rail" system, arguably because the network is mostly elevated, the system is more akin to a rapid transit (metro) system in European-North American terms. The Manila LRTA system is the first metro system in Southeast Asia, built earlier than the Singapore MRT by three years. Quick and inexpensive to ride, the system serves 605,000 passengers each day. Every day around 430,000 passengers board the Yellow Line, and 175,000 ride the Purple Line.[20][21]

Its 31 stations along over 31 kilometers (19 mi) of mostly elevated track form two lines. LRT Line 1, also called the Yellow Line, opened in 1984 and travels a north–south route. All of the

stations of the LRT-1 and MRT-2 are elevated, except for the Katipunan Stations (which is underground). They follow one of two different layouts. Most Yellow Line stations are composed of only one level, accessible from the street below by stairway, containing the station's concourse and platform areas separated by fare gates.[22]

Many passengers who ride the system also take various forms of road-based public transport, such as buses, to and from a station to reach their intended destination. [23] A reusable plastic magnetic ticketing system has replaced the previous token-based system, and the Flash Pass introduced as a step towards a more integrated transportation system.

The system is not related to the Manila Metro Rail Transit System, or the Blue Line, which forms a completely different but linked system of the Philippine National Railways.

MRTC System

Main article: Manila Metro Rail Transit System Line 3

The Manila Metro Rail Transit System has a single line, MRT-3 or the Blue Line. Although it has characteristics of light rail, such as the type of rolling stock used, it is more akin to a rapid transit system. It is not related to the Manila Light Rail Transit System, a separate but linked system.

One of its original purposes was to decongest Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), one of Metro Manila's main thoroughfares and home to the MRT-3, and many commuters who ride the system also take road-based public transport, such as buses, to reach the intended destination from a station. The system has been only partially successful in decongesting EDSA, and congestion is further aggravated by the rising number of motor vehicles.[16] The expansion of the system to cover the entire stretch of EDSA is expected to contribute to current attempts to decongest the thoroughfare and to cut travel times. The single line serves 13 stations on 16.95 kilometres (10.5 mi) of line.[24] It is mostly elevated, with some sections at grade or underground. The line commences at North Avenue and ends at Taft Avenue (Taft on the map), serving the cities that EDSA passes through: Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Makati, and Pasay. By 2004 MRT-3 had the highest ridership of the three lines, with 400,000 passengers daily.[25]

AGT System

Main article: University of the Philippines Diliman Automated Guideway Transit System

The automated guideway transit system in UP Diliman will be the first of its kind to be built in the Philippines. Plans for the system were revealed as early as December of 2010. The groundbreaking ceremony was held on July 18, 2011. It is still currently under construction and it will be developed within the campus of the University of the Philippines Diliman in Quezon City. It will serve as test track for the first mass transit system to be built and developed in the country by local engineers.[26]

Proposed subway system

MMDA Chairperson Francis Tolentino said that a proposal to build a subway from the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig to an area near a shopping mall in Quezon City. Tolentino also said that the proposal has been complete with geological study showing that a subway is feasible, and that the project is supported by DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson.[27]