Use fare hike income to fund MRT repairs – Recto

MANILA, Philippines – After 3 glitches hit the Metro Rail Transit 3 (MRT3) in just one day, Senator Ralph Recto called on transport officials to use the income from the train line’s recent fare hike to fund its repairs.

Early Tuesday, two of the MRT’s trains abruptly stopped, causing some passengers to fall over. Another train stalled around 3 pm the same day.

MRT3 general manager Roman Buenafe blamed the deteriorating condition of the aging train line for the continuous glitches, which came weeks after the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) – in a much criticized move – raised fares for the 3 major train lines in Metro Manila.

In a statement on Wednesday, February 18, Recto said the MRT administration should use the revenue from the fare hike to fund the train’s repairs.

The senator also criticized the MRT officials’ failure to provide even band-aid solutions, such as handstraps, to ensure the safety of the 600,000 passengers riding the busy train line.

“Sabi ng isang MRT spokesman, i-pro-proseso pa nila ang pagbili ng handstraps. Pero last year, kasama na iyon sa kanilang procurement program na sinubmit sa Senado,” Recto said.

(One MRT spokesman said they will still process the purchase of handstraps. But that was already part of the procurement program they submitted to the Senate last year.)

“Kung band-aid solusyon lang tulad ng handstraps ay mahirap mailagay, paano pa kaya kung mga bagong riles na ang pag-uusapan?” he added.

(If a band-aid solution like providing handstraps is already difficult to implement, how much more when it comes to the procurement of new coaches and rails?)

Under the new fare scheme, maximum rides on the train lines will cost between P28-P30 ($0.63-$0.67), from the previous P15-P20 ($0.34-$0.45).

Recto pointed out that the cost of the handstraps – P2.25 million – is only a fraction of the estimated P2 billion additional revenue from the fare hike imposed last January 4.

He also said that the DOTC had justified the fare increase with assurances of better service.

“In the official DOTC press release announcing the fare hike, the agency promised that with increased fares will come better MRT services,” Recto said.

Buenafe, however, earlier said the fare hike should not be seen as a “magic pill” that would have an immediate effect on services.

While he gave no assurances that the glitches last Tuesday won’t happen again, he promised to be more hands-on in pressuring the maintenance provider, APT Global, to improve their services.

“Patay-sunog po ako ngayon (I’m trying to fix the problems that are already there), but I have rehabilitation projects on deck,” he added.

In a Senate hearing earlier this month, the DOTC also presented a timeline of rehabilitation projects for the aging train line. 

The MRT3, which traverses through EDSA, is one of the main public transportation lines in Metro Manila, with several stations located in key business hubs. – Rappler.com 

($1=P44.29)