The longest Philippine National Railways (PNR) line, from Calamba City in Laguna to Albay will soon be constructed as the Department of Transportation (DOTr) signed a P142-billion contract on Monday, January 17.
PNR South Long Haul/ PNR Bicol Project is funded by China through official development assistance (ODA) and as for all China-funded projects, Beijing requires governments to seal agreements with contractors first before loan negotiations begin. Other projects funded by China ODA are Mindanao Railway and the Subic-Clark Railway.
The effectivity of this contract though will only be valid once the loan is approved.
PNR South Long Haul/ PNR Bicol Project Timeline
- Contract signing with contractors
- Application for official development assistance (ODA) by the Department of Finance
- Effectivity of Loan agreement
- First segment of PNR Bicol (380 kilometers)
- DOTr is eyeing to extend PNR Bicol to 565 kilometers (in the future)
PNR South Long Haul or PNR Bicol is a joint venture (JV) between China Railway Group, China Railway No. 3 Engineering Group, and China Railway Engineering Consulting (CREC) Group where they will be doing the design, construction, and electromechanical works for the first segment (380 km) of the railway project. This will stretch from Barangay Banlic, Calamba City, to Daraga, Albay.
First segment features
- 23 stations
- 10 passenger tunnels
- 70-hectare depot in San Pablo City, Laguna
These transportation constructions are a great help to every Filipino as the means of transportation have been a problem and inconvenience for way too long. Once done and fully operational, the railway line will cut travel from Metro Manila to Bicol to as short as four hours which is a far cry from its current 12 hours by road. Passenger trains and freight trains are seen to run at 160 km/h and 100 km/h, respectively.
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