No excuse for Monday morning glitch but Abaya claims fewer MRT woes this year

Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya said there was no excuse for the Monday morning MRT glitch that left thousands of commuters lining up the stretch of EDSA between Kamuning Road and Quezon Avenue.

However, Abaya said there were now fewer glitches at the MRT compared to a year ago.

"No excuse na nangyari ito. Siyempre sagabal sa trabaho but at least tingin ko we've lessened the glitches as compared to a year ago. The people deserve better services, much lesser interruptions and more trains," Abaya said in Steve Dailisan's report on 24 Oras.

Abaya said that the roll-out of the first batch of new light rail vehicles (LRVs) are expected soon after the completion of its 5,000-kilometer testing.

He added that commuters had a right to be impatient since the backlog of trains date back since the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the mid-2000s.

“May karapatan talaga sila mainip di ba? Etong bagong train na ito, panahon pa lang ni GMA middle of 2000 nandyan na ang pangangailangan. Tao ang maghuhusga na ito palabas na at magagamit natin,” Abaya said.

Elvira Medina, president of National Council for Commuter Protection, said the new LRVs purchased from CNR Dalian Locomotive in China were "substandard."

“Kung umupo ka roon, tamang-tama lang iyong puwet mo na uupo. Hindi ka man lang makakaupo ng komportable. Sobra na po iyong pahirap, magkita kita na lang po kami sa balota,” Medina said.

The government received its fifth and sixth batch of new LRVs on Sunday night with 42 more expected to be delivered until 2017. —Joseph Tristan Lopez/NB, GMA News