FACT CHECK: Acquisition of new LRT1 trains started before Marcos

Claim: The recent acquisition of light rail vehicles (LRVs) for the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT1) is President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s project.

Rating: MISSING CONTEXT

Why we fact-checked this: The YouTube video containing the claim has 24,834 views as of writing. It was posted on July 25 by a channel with over 741,000 subscribers.

What the video said: The title of the YouTube video says: “Just now: Grabe! Nakakalulang project ni PBBM natapos na sa wakas. FPRRD naiyak. Dilawan media natameme.” 

(Just now: Massive project of PBBM is finally accomplished. FPRRD cried. Dilawan media speechless.)

In the video, the narrator discusses the recent inauguration of the new LRVs for the LRT1, and credits Marcos and his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte.

The facts: The new trains will be used in the existing LRT1 line and on the long-overdue LRT1 Cavite extension project. The plan to procure 120 brand new LRVs for LRT1 was announced in 2015, during the administration of former president Benigno Aquino III. The contract for the supply of the LRVs and delivery of the first batch happened during the Duterte administration.

LRV acquisition timeline: In 2013, the government secured a P19-billion loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency for the “Capacity Enhancement of Mass Transit Systems in Metro Manila Project,” which included the acquisition of new trains for the LRT1 Cavite extension project.

In 2015, the transportation department said it will acquire 120 LRVs “to meet demand, and to maintain the right headway between arriving trains at the stations” for the LRT1 line’s 11.7-kilometer extension.  

There had been delays in securing a bidder from Japanese firms, but in 2017, under the Duterte administration, Mitsubishi Corp. won the contract to supply the new LRVs.

The first batch of the fourth generation trains started arriving in January 2021 and underwent trial runs in May 2022.

On July 19, Marcos led the inauguration of the new fourth generation LRVs which can accommodate about 1,300 passengers.

Currently, only 20 of the 30 train sets (80 of the 120 LRVs) have arrived in the country, with the rest expected to be delivered between November 2023 and February 2024.

LRT1 extension project: The P64.9-billion railway project will extend the existing LRT1 train line all the way to Bacoor, Cavite. 

During the inauguration of the LRVs, Marcos said the project is expected to serve up to 800,000 additional passengers daily and cut travel time between Baclaran, Pasay City, and Bacoor “from one hour and 10 minutes to 25 minutes.” 

The Light Rail Manila Consortium said that the complete deployment of the new train sets on the main LRT1 line is on track for completion by the fourth quarter of 2024, and the full extension of the railway by 2027. – Ailla Dela Cruz/Rappler.com

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