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MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Philippine National Railways (PNR) may not be able to resume partial operations on June 15, as originally planned.
On Tuesday, June 9, PNR postponed the test runs — intended to ensure the safety of the Metro Train before the June 15 resumption of service – due to unfinished repair works.
“It [test run] did not push through because works are still being done. We will announce this week whether we can meet the June 15 target [to resume operations] or will wait for another week,” PNR spokesman Paul de Quiros said in a text message on Tuesday.
Early this month, PNR general manager Joseph Allan Dilay said the PNR would resume partial operations once it secures a safety certification from independent assessor TÜV Rheinland.
Last month, the PNR suspended its operations after a southbound train was derailed on April 29, injuring at least 50 passengers.
The Tutuban-Alabang-Calamba service was suspended to pave the way for an exhaustive inspection of its train tracks to ensure passenger safety.
Investigations showed that missing angle bars, rail clips, and rail joints – likely pilfered – caused the accident.
The PNR is losing close to P800,000 ($17,893.50) a day due to the suspension of the train service, which also affects about 70,000 commuters per day mostly from the Laguna area.
The government is bidding out the P144.38-million ($3.29 million) rail track improvement of the PNR to revive Southeast Asia’s oldest railway system.
The project will add a second track to run parallel to the single track currently connecting the Sucat and Alabang stations. – Rappler.com
US$1 = P44.72
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