Subway project leaves out Taguig

PROPERTY developer Philippine Infradev Holdings Inc. and the Makati City government still have no plans to include Taguig City in their joint venture agreement to build a subway.

Makati City Mayor Mar-Len Abigail Binay said they were not considering working with Taguig in the construction of the Makati subway, which has been sidelined due to the territorial dispute between the two cities.

«That uncontrollable variable of having to deal with the City of Taguig is the number one issue. We are already struggling with schools and health centers; what more with the subway? It's not being considered,» Binay said in English and Filipino.

Infradev, the lead private sector proponent, said last month that the design of the 10-kilometer railway system was no longer «feasible» since two of the 10 stations will be located in the Enlisted Men's Barrios (EMBO) barangay of West Rembo and Pembo.

The Supreme Court has ruled that Taguig has jurisdiction over the EMBO barangay that Makati had long administered.

Binay said Infradev has presented a new proposal for the subway project.

She said she was still reviewing the firm's proposal while indicating the possibility of a new mass transport system.

«We will announce soon because, hopefully, we will be able to deliver something by 2025,» the mayor said. «Of course, it will be another mass transport system. What it will be and how it will be executed is [what the city is currently studying].»

Transport advocacy network The Passenger Forum (TPF) has urged Infradev and the Makati government to resolve the matter.

«We hope that they will find a workable solution as this is a very important mass transportation project, and about 700,000 passengers are expected to ride and benefit from this subway on a daily basis,» TPF convener Primo Morillo said in a statement.

Infradev shares remained unchanged last Friday to close at P0.50 apiece amid a 1.32-percent increase in the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.