Grace Poe suggests premium coaches in MRT, LRT for commuters who can afford

In an effort to come up with “out-of-the-box” solutions to Metro Manila's traffic woes, Senator Grace Poe on Thursday suggested that the MRT and LRT lines start designating premium coaches for those who could afford to pay P200 to P300 in exchange for added convenience.

During the hearing of the Department of Transportation's budget for 2020, Poe indicated that car owners who could afford the price may opt leave their vehicles home and take the MRT or LRT.

Poe compared her proposal to having first class seats in airline flights.

“So sabihin na nating tig-200 pesos, tig-300 pesos ‘yung sasakay do’n. Meron silang guaranteed space and designated line. Bakit? Kasi ‘yung mga tao who can afford to pay that amount are the ones that probably drive private vehicles,” Poe said.

“Initially, naisip namin, ‘Teka baka naman discriminatory ito.’ Pero the reality is, many pay for additional service. Like kunyari, sasakay ka ng eroplano. Merong front seats na mas mahal, first to board, but you pay a premium," she added.

"‘Yung extrang kikitain naman nito, babalik din sa DOTr para sa serbisyo ng ating mga kababayan," Poe said.

Ordinary, business, first class

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the agency would study how the suggestion could be implemented in the MRT and LRT lines.

He said the new Philippine National Railway (PNR) lines under construction would already have three classes: ordinary, business, and first class.

“‘Yung suhestiyon po, pwede pong pagtuunan ng pansin ‘yan pag nagawa na po ‘yung kabuuuan ng ating Sumitomo [deal] kasi doon pa lang po tayo magkakaroon ng family of trains para sa gano’n, maprograma po ‘yun,” Tugade said. —NB, GMA News