President Aquino’s legacy no doubt will be marked by high prices in goods and services in which he made no effort to stop them from rising too much. Read the rest of this entry »
MRT-LRT rate hikes unjustified—senators
September 10, 2011
$1.5-b rail rehab unveiled
June 4, 2011
The Transport Department unveiled Friday a “comprehensive rehabilitation” plan for Metro Rail Transit 3 and Light Rail Transit 1 lines costing a combined $1.5 billion. Read the rest of this entry »
Reviving the ‘Bicol Express’
May 30, 2011
MANILA, Philippines – The plains of the countryside, the landscapes of hills and coconut trees, the serenity of remote villages, views of the sea and high bridges – these were some of the scenes that were unique to passengers aboard a Philippine National Railways (PNR) train which left Tutuban station in Manila a few minutes past 7 a.m. on May 22. Read the rest of this entry »
Just privatize PNR
May 30, 2011
The current PNR general manager should probably be given a medal for his heroic efforts to make the government-owned railroad company run its trains again all the way to Bicol. He is most probably of my generation, albeit a few years younger, to feel so passionately about the Bicol Express. There is something romantic about the PNR in those days… it wasn’t the Orient Express but it served our needs. Read the rest of this entry »
‘Overloading’ blamed for frequent malfunctioning of LRT trains
May 19, 2011
Authorities of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) have blamed “overloading” for the frequent malfunctioning of their trains. Read the rest of this entry »
MRT fare subsidy is like CCT
May 13, 2011
I don’t know why the DOTC Usec/spokesman even dared to appear on TV Patrol last Tuesday evening if he cannot explain his department’s position on the proposed MRT fare increase. He also looked so pathetic as he failed to explain on a live nationwide newscast why DOTC is proposing to give a private sector company P15 billion to temporarily run the MRT/LRT for four years. Of course anchor Noli de Castro was frustrated and he said so in so many words just as he was closing the newscast. Read the rest of this entry »
PNR to invest P1.7B to revive rail lines
March 14, 2011
STATE-RUN Philippine National Railway (PNR) has secured multibillion-peso funding from the national government to revive its defunct line from Manila to Bicol. Read the rest of this entry »
PNR to get 50 coaches from Japan
March 13, 2011
MANILA, Philippines – State-run Philippine National Railways (PNR) will have 50 more train cars in the coming months as part of a government donation agreement with the East Japan Railway Co. (JR-East). Read the rest of this entry »
PNR
March 7, 2011
Joey Sarasola, a former PNR general manager, sent me further clarification on the role of Japanese assistance to PNR during his watch. Read the rest of this entry »
Govt reduces, defers urban rail fare hikes
February 25, 2011
THE Aquino administration on Thursday approved the reduction of the fare hike at the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3 to P25 from an earlier proposal of P30. Read the rest of this entry »
