The Department of Transportation (DOTr) and Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) officials laid out ambitious modernization and sustainability goals, including a significant reduction in train wait times, during the 7th Philippine Railway Summit held on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency, City of Dreams, Manila.
The event, which brought together top-level executives and key stakeholders, underscored the government’s robust commitment to expanding and modernizing the nation’s mass transit system.
DOTr Assistant Secretary for Railways Atty. Eduardo Danilo F. Macabulos opened the summit by providing a comprehensive update on the nation’s railway infrastructure agenda. He highlighted the steady progress of mega-projects, including the MRT-7, the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR), and the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP), reinforcing the government’s commitment to large-scale mass transit expansion.
Following this, DOTr MRT-3 General Manager Michael J. Capati presented the line’s strategic direction under the theme, “MRT-3: Toward A Safer, Greener, and More Efficient Metro Railway.” His presentation focused on maximizing the benefits realized from the line’s recently completed comprehensive rehabilitation.
The centerpiece of the MRT-3’s efficiency strategy is an aggressive goal to further slash train headway—the time between arriving trains—from the current 8 to 9.5 minutes down to a targeted 3.5 to 5 minutes.
“This reduction in headway is a critical step toward enhancing commuter experience,” said GM Capati. “By nearly halving the wait time for passengers, we dramatically improve the flow of our system and increase ridership capacity along the heavily utilized EDSA route. This represents a tangible benefit of the major rehabilitation effort we have just concluded.”
GM Capati also affirmed the railway’s commitment to safety and sustainability. He emphasized implementing rigorous preventive and predictive maintenance technologies to ensure that the peak operational metrics achieved post-rehabilitation are sustained, guaranteeing reliable service and commuter safety across the entire line.
Further underscoring its environmental commitment, the DOTr MRT-3 already offers a significantly lower-carbon footprint alternative to private vehicle use along EDSA. Future plans will actively explore the integration of energy-efficient practices and sustainable power sources to create a truly “Greener” railway network.
The 7th Philippine Railway Summit successfully reinforced President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s commitment to enhancing railway connectivity and utilizing state-of-the-art railway technology systems to deliver increased ridership and reduced travel time across the archipelago.
