MRT-7 reaches completion rate of 62.1%

The P68.2-billion Metro Rail Transit Line 7 (MRT-7) is 62.1 percent complete and will partially operate this year, two decades after the project’s unsolicited proposal was submitted, according to a statement from the Department of Transportation (DOTR), according to a report by Manila Bulletin.

The unsolicited proposal for the MRT-7 was first submitted to the government in 2001, and the concession agreement was eventually signed in 2008.

However, as of June 2016, not a single post has been built, and not a single train has even been ordered.

Actual construction of the project only began in August 2016, during the Duterte administration, said the DOTR.

After two decades, in partnership with the San Miguel Corp. group, construction of the MRT-7 is in full swing, and delivery of brand new trains from South Korea is already ongoing.

The MRT-7 project is expected to accommodate 300,000 passengers during its first year of full operations, and up to 850,000 by its 12th year.

Once completed, the 22-kilometer railway will link North Avenue, Quezon City and San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, reducing travel time from the present 2 to 3 hours to just 35 minutes.