LRMC signs P450-M deal for train rehab, upgrade

Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC), the private operator of the Light Rail Transit Line 1, tapped Voith Digital Solutions Austria GmBH and Co KG for the rehabilitation and upgrade of newer trains.

The company, backed by local conglomerates Ayala Corp. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp., said the contract was valued at P450 million.

Under the agreement, Voith will be reengineering 24 of its so-called generation 2 light rail vehicles (LRVs) over the next two years.

“The rehabilitation of the 24 LRVs will expand capacity which should result in faster travel time because of reduced train headway and queueing time,” LRMC president and CEO Juan Alfonso said in a statement.

“This is another step that will significantly improve our passengers’ daily commute,” he added.

The project will be the first overhaul of the generation 2 fleet’s propulsion system since the government bought the generation 2 trains from Hyundai and Adtranz Sweden in 1999.

The current fleet of LRT 1 includes 51 generation 1 LRVs bought in 1984, eight generation 2 LRVs bought in 1999, and 44 generation 3 LRVs bought in 2007.

The Department of Transportation recently signed the procurement of 120 new LRVs for delivery in 2020.

LRMC said it had completed the rehabilitation program on generation 1 LRVs, resulting in the increase of the fleet from 77 to 109 LRVs and the number of daily trips from 498 to 554.

“In less than two years since assuming management of LRT 1, LRMC was able to improve efficiencies,” the company said in a statement.