The rail transportation in the Greater Manila Area is a major part of the transportation system in Metro Manila and its surrounding areas. The railway network, collectively known as the Greater Capital Region Railway System, consists of the Manila Light Rail Transit System (LRT), Manila Metro Rail Transit System (MRT), and Philippine National Railways lines within the region.
The network makes up the majority of active railways in the country and bear the brunt of providing the metropolis with rail as a faster alternative mode of transport other than buses and jeepneys. However, these systems are currently insufficient for the rapidly expanding metropolis; to address this, new lines and line extensions are under construction, which will extend the system far out into neighboring regions.
Network There are three primary rail systems in the region:
Manila Light Rail Transit System (LRT) – owned by the Light Rail Transit Authority, a government-owned and controlled corporation under the Department of Transportation. Manila Metro Rail Transit System (MRT) – includes lines not owned by the LRTA, such as MRT Line 3 and MRT Line 7. Philippine National Railways – includes the PNR Metro Commuter Line from Governor Pascual station in Malabon to IRRI station in Laguna. Both North and South commuter lines closed in 2024 to give way for the construction of the North–South Commuter Railway.
In 2024, the system served 845,000 passengers daily on average.
All lines are open every day of the year from 4:30 am PST (UTC+8) at the earliest until 10:15 pm at the latest. During Holy Week, a public holiday in the Philippines, the rail system is closed for annual maintenance, owing to fewer commuters and traffic around the metro. Normal operation resumes after Easter Sunday. During the Christmas and year-end holidays, the operating hours of the system are shortened due to the low ridership of the system during the holidays.
Line colorLine nameOpenedLast extensionTerminiStationsLengthTypeRapid transit linesGreenLRT Line 1Fernando Poe Jr.25Light railPurpleLRT Line 213Heavy rail YellowMRT Line 3—13Light railOrangeMRT Line 42033 (projected)—EDSA10Heavy railMaroonMRT Line 72027 (projected)—North EDSA14Heavy railBlueMetro Manila Subway2032 (projected)—NAIA Terminal 317Heavy railPhilippine National Railways lines RedNorth–South Commuter Railway2027 (West Valenzuela to Malolos)2028 (Malolos to Clark International Airport)2032 (full operations)—36Commuter rail Orange Inter-Provincial CommuterOctober 7, 2022—3Commuter railOther rail lines TBD SkyTrain——Uptown Bonifacio2TBDPeople mover
Stations
Administration The administration of the region's railway network is overseen by the national government's Department of Transportation (DOTr). However, each line is operated and managed by a different entity. While the Light Rail Transit Authority owns the LRT, it only operates LRT Line 2, while LRT Line 1 is operated by the Light Rail Manila Corporation. Meanwhile, the lines under the MRT are owned and operated independently by several private companies; the Metro Rail Transit Corporation owns MRT Line 3 while SMC Mass Rail Transit 7 owns the MRT Line 7. As a result, each line in the network operates with its own infrastructure and system distinct from one another, creating a fragmented, "piecemeal" network.
Although the lines are unified by coordinated numbers, colors, and the Beep payment system for automated fare collection, the railway network remains loosely integrated, which has resulted in several issues. Interchanges between lines are poorly connected, requiring passengers to exit the paid area of one system, enter another, and pay a separate fare for each transfer. Furthermore, the lines display the network inconsistently across station maps, diagrams, and other informational materials.
History
Early rail systems
Rail transportation in the Manila area dates back to 1878 when an official from Spain's Department of Public Works for the Philippines submitted a proposal for a Manila streetcar system, now referred to as the Tranvía. The system proposed was a five-line network emanating from Plaza San Gabriel in Binondo, running to Intramuros, Malate, Malacañan Palace, Sampaloc and Tondo. The project was approved and in 1882, Spanish-German businessman Jacobo Zóbel de Zangroniz, Spanish engineer Luciano M. Bremon, and Spanish banker Adolfo Bayo, founded the Compañia de los Tranvias de Filipinas to operate the concession granted by the Spanish colonial government. The first line opened in the system, the Tondo line, would open on December 9, 1883, predating the Ferrocarril de Manila–Dagupan by nine years, serving as the first rail transport in the country. Numerous other lines would open in the following years; the Intramuros line would open in 1886, the Sampaloc line in 1887, and the Malabón line in 1888.
The Ferrocarril de Manila–Dagupan, which constitutes much of the PNR North Main Line today, began construction on July 31, 1887, with the laying of the cornerstone for Tutuban station, and the line opened on November 24, 1892. Expansion of the Philippine railway network would not begin until the American colonial period, when on December 8, 1902, the Philippine Commission passed legislation authorizing the construction of another railway line from Manila to Southern Luzon.
American period With the American takeover of the Philippines, legislation was passed in 1909 authorizing further railway construction and the use of government bonds to finance them, and by 1916, of track had been built by the company, which had reorganized itself as the Manila Railroad Company of New Jersey (MRR). The Manila Railroad Company, which preceded the PNR, operated various local trains between Manila and its neighboring provinces. Trains from Tutuban lead to Naic in Cavite, Pagsanjan in Laguna, Montalban in Rizal, and Bulacan during the 1920s.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Commission allowed the Manila Electric Railroad and Light Company (Meralco) to take over the properties of the Compañia de los Tranvias de Filipinas, with the first of twelve mandated electric tranvia (tram) lines operated by MERALCO opening in Manila in 1905. At the end of the first year around 63 kilometers (39 mi) of track had been laid. A five-year reconstruction program was initiated in 1920, and by 1924, 170 cars serviced many parts of the city and its outskirts. Although it was an efficient system for the city's 220,000 inhabitants, by the 1930s the streetcar network had stopped expanding. Much of the Tranvía network and rail services would be destroyed during World War II.
Post-war period Following the war, the MRR was able to restore limited services, using surplus military equipment and payments made by the United States Army and the Philippine Commonwealth Army for use of railway facilities in the Philippines Campaign. However, the tram network was damaged beyond repair and was dismantled; jeepneys became the city's primary form of transportation, plying the routes once served by the tram lines. With the return of buses and cars to the streets, traffic congestion became a problem.
In 1966, the Philippine government granted a franchise to Philippine Monorail Transport Systems (PMTS) for the operation of an inner-city monorail.Republic of the Philippines. (Approved: June 14, 1966). Republic Act No. 4652 – An Act Granting the Philippine Monorail Transit System, Incorporated a Franchise to Establish, Maintain and Operate a Monorail Transportation Service in the City of Manila and Suburbs and Cebu City and Province . Retrieved December 13, 2009, from the Chan Robles Virtual Law Library. The monorail's feasibility was still being evaluated when the government asked the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) to conduct a separate transport study. Prepared between 1971 and 1973, the JICA study proposed a series of circumferential and radial roads, an inner-city rapid transit system, a commuter railway, and an expressway with three branches. After further examination, many recommendations were adopted; however, none of them involved rapid transit and the monorail was never built. PMTS' franchise subsequently expired in 1974.Republic of the Philippines. (Enacted: October 4, 1971). Republic Act No. 6417 – An Act Amending Sections Three And Seven Of Republic Act Numbered Forty-Six Hundred Fifty-Two, Entitled "An Act Granting the Philippine Monorail Transit System, Incorporated a Franchise to Establish, Maintain and Operate a Monorail Transportation Service in the City Of Manila and Suburbs and Cebu City and Province" . Retrieved December 13, 2009, from the Chan Robles Virtual Law Library.
Meanwhile, the MRR's successor, the Philippine National Railways, opened its commuter service from Manila North Harbor to Biñan, Laguna. During this decade, more stations were opened although some were either closed or relocated. In 1976, the commuter system peaked and extended as far north as San Fernando, Pampanga, Guadalupe (located in Mandaluyong on the other side of Pasig River) to the east, and College to the south. There were also services in the now-defunct Carmona branch line.
Another study was performed between 1976 and 1977, this time by Freeman Fox and Associates and funded by the World Bank. It originally suggested a street-level railway, but its recommendations were revised by the newly formed Ministry of Transportation and Communications (now the Department of Transportation). The ministry instead called for an elevated system because of the city's many intersections. However, the revisions increased the price of the project from ₱1.5 billion to ₱2 billion. A supplementary study was conducted and completed within three months.
In 1978, at the request of the Philippine government, the Japan International Cooperation Agency conducted a study on the electrification of the PNR's north and south commuter lines in Metro Manila. The plan, formulated to keep up with the increasing demand for transportation in the Manila area, called for the replacement of the diesel-run trains and the electrification of the PNR commuter line. Two experts from the Japanese National Railways were sent to conduct the study.
Introduction of rapid transit
President Ferdinand Marcos created the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) on July 12, 1980, by virtue of Executive Order No. 603 Retrieved February 15, 2010, from the Light Rail Transit Authority Website. giving birth to what was then dubbed the "Metrorail". Construction of Metrorail started in September 1981. The line was test-run in March 1984, and the first half of the line from Baclaran to Central Terminal was opened on December 1, 1984. With the opening of its first segment, LRT Line 1 became the first rapid transit service in Southeast Asia. The second half, from Central Terminal to Monumento, was opened on May 12, 1985.The Line 1 System – The Yellow Line. [ca. 2010]. Light Rail Transit Authority. Retrieved January 19, 2010. Overcrowding and poor maintenance resulted in the system's inefficiency and disruptions to operations. The premature aging of Line 1 led to an extensive refurbishing and structural capacity expansion program with the help of Japan's ODA.
During the construction of the LRT Line 1, Electrowatt Engineering Services of Zürich also designed a comprehensive plan for metro service in Metro Manila. The plan—still used as the basis for planning new metro lines—consisted of a network of rapid transit lines spanning all major corridors within 20 years. The plan would be revised in 1999 as the Metro Manila Urban Transportation Integration Study by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
In the 1993 Updated Traffic and Transport Management Plan, which proposes the network of five LRT lines that were approved in 1995:
LRT-1: Baclaran to Monumento, 15 km; existing LRT-2: Old Bilibid to Katipunan, 11.76 km LRT-3: Monumento to F.B. Harrison, 22 km