Right of way (ROW) issues are one of the problems in the construction of the North-South railway, according to Philippine National Railway (PNR) Chairman Michael Ted R. Macapagal.
“The challenge is of course road problems. That is a big obstacle, I must admit,” said Mr. Macapagal on July 31 in an interview.
He added that it is important to inform people about the role of this program in reducing congestion and reducing travel time in Metro Manila by 50%.
“We need to inform them about the different benefits that people will receive when this program is completed.”
In addition, making a ‘soft balance’ will help overcome that difficulty, said Mr. Macapagal.
“We, the government, must take decisions, but… we must show compassion. We have to explain to people why we do what we do.”
He also added that the government has extended financial assistance to those living in slums and affected by this construction.
To quickly address the ROW issues, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. inked Administrative Order (AO) 19which created an inter-agency team to manage ROW activities for railway projects like NSCR on March 25.
As stated in AO 19, the assigned committee will “study and design an effective and collaborative approach to streamline the land acquisition process required for the implementation of all rail projects.”
Tutuban to Malolos station has 43.49% construction progress, while Malolos to Clark has 33.06%. Manila to Calamba has also started its construction with a progress of 7.20%, according to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) on Monday.
The department aims to be fully operational by 2030, with partial operation by 2027.
The rail project aims to transport 800,000 passengers per day when fully operational. – Almira Louise S. Martinez