The Department of Transportation (DOTr) did not secure funding for the rehabilitation of Light Rail Transit (LRT) Lines 1 and 2 in the 2025 National Expenditure Program (NEP), impacting the daily 435,000 commuters.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista acknowledged the challenge of pursuing projects omitted from the NEP, including the requested P19.65 billion for LRT-1 and P9.65 billion for LRT-2 upgrades.
The LRT-1, which serves 298,740 daily passengers and is set to extend to Parañaque City, and the LRT-2, with 149,331 daily riders, both require significant improvements.
Additionally, the DOTr’s request for P18.8 billion to construct Metro Rail Transit Line 4, P925.56 million for new air traffic control equipment, and P3.05 billion for the New Cebu International Container Port Project were also not approved.
Furthermore, a P7 billion request to extend the Service Contracting Program was excluded from the NEP.
Source : PhilNews24 | August 29, 2024
