DOTr's Tugade says MRT-7 to be completed in Q4 2019

The planned Metro Rail Transit System Line 7 (MRT-7) will be completed by the fourth quarter of 2019, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said on Thursday.

"Nagkasundo-sundo po kami, itaga niyo sa bato 'yan, tatapusin nila ito in two years, last quarter of 2019. Ipinangako nila sa 'kin kanina 'yan," Tugade said during a media briefing on the MRT-7 project in Quezon City.

All stakeholders such as San Miguel Corp. and its contractor, the South Korean consortium of Hyundai Rotem Co. and Yuchengco-led EEI Corp., have agreed to fast track and complete the railway system.

MRT-7 is a 22-kilometer rail transit system with 14 stations that will connect North Avenue in Quezon City to San Jose Del Monte City in Bulacan.

The 14 stations will be along North Avenue; Quezon City Memorial Circle; University Avenue; Tandang Sora; Don Antonio; Batasan; Manggahan; Doña Carmen; Regalado; Mindanao Avenue; Quirino; Sacred Heart; Tala; and San Jose Del Monte.

During the same briefing, Norberto Conti, who heads the technical infrastructure department of San Miguel Holdings Corp., said the MRT-7 is expected to carry 500,000 passengers per day.

"It is about 36 train sets or 108 cars. It is enough to carry 500,000 passengers per day," he said.

The excavation phase of the underground tunnel at QC Memorial Circle station is ongoing, Conti noted.

The traffic situation from the ongoing works at the MRT-7 station columns along Doña Carmen and Regalado Streets in Quezon City is expected to improve by December this year, Tugade noted. San Miguel vowed to finish the columns later this year, he said.

"We ask for the public's continuous understanding and patience as we are striving to complete the construction of MRT-7 by 2019. Ang mga nararanasan po nating abala sa kasalukuyan, lahat po 'yan ay pansamantala lamang. Pero pangmatagalang ginhawa naman ang masisiguro ko sa inyo sa oras na ito'y makumpleto," the transportation chief said.

To address the right-of-way hurdles, the local government of Quezon City and the National Housing Authority (NHA) guaranteed the relocation of informal settlers that will be affected by the construction of the North Avenue and Quezon Memorial Circle stations, Tugade said.

One hundred sixty families have so far been identified, but the vetting process is ongoing.

"Ang sabi po ng NHA ang problema dito sa proyektong ito ay right-of-way. Sabi po ni general manager Escalada, 'Mr. Secretary I'm alloting to you 6,000 units of houses already with water and electricity'," Tugade said.

Marcelino Escalada is the NHA general manager.

Relocation sites are being prepared in Tanay, Rizal and in Bulacan, Tugade noted. Other options for relocation were the "Balik Probinsiya" program of the government.

To fast track the resolution of the right-of-way issue, Tugade said that the Department of Budget and Management will fund costs involved. — VDS, GMA News