Philippines: Free train rides for one month

Manila: Monday (March 28, 2022) marks the 77th birthday of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. It’s also the first day of a one-month free ride given to Metro commuters in Manila, on Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3).

President Duterte earlier announced the month-long free rides during the inauguration of the MRT-3 rehabilitation project. The free rides run until April 30, 2022.

“Today, passengers enjoy cooler, aside from faster MRT-3 rides as all train cars have also been installed with new and 100% functioning air conditioning units,” the MRT-3 management said in a statement.

“The free ride program of MRT-3 is launched with this objective of showcasing the improved services of the rail line, in order to gain back the public confidence in our mass transportation system,” it added.

The free train rides are aimed at alleviating the financial woes of passengers amid soaring costs of fuel and commodities.

On Monday, the Line 3 of Manila’s MRT also deployed its first-ever, and longer four-car train set — which could carry up to 1,576 passengers.

The four-car trains are scheduled to run during peak hours — from 7 am and 5 pm respectively — and are meant to boost the busy line’s passenger capacity. Each Czech-made train car of the MRT-3 is capable of carrying up to 394 passengers—1,182 passengers per three-car train.

An average of 18 to 22 trains — including four-car trains — are running at the MRT-3’s revenue line at any given time.

“That’s a far cry from when we had 10 to 15 trains running, and we had an all-time low of only six trains,” said MRT-3's Officer-in-Charge General Manager Michael Capati.

The MRT-3 recorded six running train sets on its mainline on May 24, 2015, an “all-time low” for the rail service and was attributed to the “poor maintenance” of the MRT-3’s previous maintenance provider.

He said 48 out of the 72 CKD train cars have so far been overhauled, ensuring that the MRT-3 has plenty of operational trains. As a result, trains now run faster and cooler after the installation of new air conditioning units.

On March 8, 2022, a total of 51,202 female passengers were given free rides aboard the Light Rail Transit Line 2 (LRT-2) and the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) in celebration of National Women’s Day.

The Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) — the operator and maintenance provider of the LRT-2 — recorded a total of 12,757 free rides given to women during the same day.

In addition to the free train rides, the LRTA also offered free blood typing tests, blood pressure checking, and random blood sugar tests at the LRT-2 Recto and Araneta Center – Cubao stations.

“These activities aim to honour and recognise the indispensable role of women in our society as well as reaffirm DOTr and LRTA’s commitment to gender equality and women empowerment,” LRTA Administrator Jeremy Regino said in a Facebook post. The Philippines marks every March 8 of the year as a working special holiday, and is known as National Women’s Day.

President Duterte's single term of 6 years in office ends on June 30, 2022.