There would be sufficient MRT3 coaches to carry an increasing number of commuters, who are availing of the free train ride offer of the Department of Transportation beginning yesterday. Now commuters can have a feel of Dalian trains and 4 and 3-car trains which had been tested before.
The Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) is making historic firsts yet again as the Department of Transportation (DOTr) announced that the line will now utilize the Dalian trains.
In a statement, MRT-3 Officer-in-Charge General Manager Michael Capati announced that they have deployed two 4-car trains scheduled to run during peak hours, from 7 am to 5 pm.
The launch also supported the increased ridership brought by the free MRT-3 ride program offered by the agency starting this March 28 until the end of April.
Also read: Free rides at MRT3, EDSA Bus Carousel next week
During the morning rush hour of March 28, MRT-3 deployed one Dalian train set making a total of 19 trains on the tracks, all of which carried passengers without a hitch.
The Dalian trains were previously believed to be too heavy for the tracks during a 2018 Senate hearing. The trains underwent dynamic testing last year to ensure they are safe to use.
MRT-3 commuters can expect the same setup of one Dalian train, two 4-car CKD trains, and a number of 3-car CKD trains for the duration of the free ride program.
"We want to serve as many passengers as possible, kaya naman talagang pinaghandaan namin itong scenario na ito kung saan mas maraming pasahero na ang kayang pagsilbihan ng MRT-3,” said Capati.
According to MRT-3, both CKD and Dalian trains can load up to 394 passengers therefore a 3-car configuration can hold up to 1,182 passengers and a 4-car configuration up to 1,576 passengers.
On the first day of the free ride program, MRT-3 recorded a total of 281,507 ridership. The line’s average before the pandemic is around 250,000 to 300,000 daily ridership.
The free ride program can be availed anytime during MRT-3's operating hours from 4:40 am to 10:10 pm until April 30, 2022.
Tags: #mrt3, #freeride, #daliantrains, #train, #commuters, #transportation