MAY kabuuang P741.4 billion na capital expenditures (capex) ang inilalaan para sa development ng multiple railway projects sa Luzon at Mindanao, ayon sa Department of Transportation (DOTr).
Sa isang virtual presser, sinabi ni Timothy John Batan, ang transport undersecretary for railways, na inilalaan ng gobyerno ang budget para sa 11 railway projects upang i-decongest ang Metro Manila tungo sa pag-unlad ng bansa.
Aniya, hanggang noong 2017, ang traffic congestion sa Metro Manila ay may annual economic cost na halos P1.3 trillion.
Ang capex spending program ay inaasahang magsusulong sa major rail projects ng bansa, na may pinagsamang project cost na P1.669 trillion.
Kabilang sa mga proyektong ito ang LRT-1 Cavite Extension – P65 billion; LRT-2 East Extension – P9.5 billion; LRT-2 West Extension – P10.1 billion; MRT-3 Rehabilitation – P30 billion; MRT-4 – P49.8 billion; MRT-7 – P68.2 billion; Metro Manila Subway – P357 billion; Common Station – P2.95 billion; North-South Commuter Railway – P777.6 billion; Subic-Clark Railway – P50 billion; PNR Bicol / South Long Haul – P175.3 billion; at Mindanao Railway – P81.7 billion.
Ayon kay Batan, ang rail network ng bansa ay inaasahang lalawak sa 1,209 km pagsapit ng 2025 mula sa 77 kilometers lamang noong 2016.
Ang Jakarta ay may 170.2 km rail network; of Seoul, 490 km; Tokyo, 700 km, at Shanghai, 690 km.
Bukod sa sariling budget ng bansa, sinabi ni Batan na ang funding sources para sa railway projects ay kinabibilangan ng official development assistance (ODA) loans mula sa Japan International Cooperation Agency, Asian Development Bank, Chinese government, at mula sa public-private partnership (PPP) scheme.
“We really need mass public transport. And trains or railways are the most efficient form of mass public transport with the highest capacity. That is why we are pushing for the funding of these projects even through loans,” ani Batan.
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