MABALACAT City officials have vowed support to the railway project that will link Clark Freeport to Metro Manila and Southern Luzon.
This following the second Information Education and Communication (IEC) on the North-South Commuter Railway Extension Project which is expected to cut travel time from Metro Manila to Clark International Airport to about an hour.
The city officials, led by Mayor Cris Garbo, met recently with representatives of the Department of Transportation DOTr and Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) in line with the construction of the P777.55-billion North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) Extension Project.
DoTr and Jica representatives briefed Garbo and other city officials of the Detailed Design Phase of NSCR-Ex Malolos-Clark-CIA Section.
The national government agency also presented updated information on the Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) for families which will be affected by the project.
The DOTR solicited the support of the local government for the RAP implementation.
The transportation department, which will provide funds for the relocation of informal settlers, requested the LGU to prepare the resettlement sites and the actual relocation of the families temporarily occupying railway tracks.
The 53-kilometer elevated Malolos-Clark Section will have six stations in Calumpit, Apalit, San Fernando, Angeles, Clark, and Clark International Airport.
Last month, the Asian Development Bank approved funds of up to $2.75 billion for the 53.1-kilometer Malolos-Clark Railway (MCR) project connecting Malolos in Bulacan and Clark Freeport.
The MCR project is part of the big-ticket North-South Commuter Railway stretching 163 kilometers from New Clark City in Tarlac to Calamba in Laguna province.
The railway will be partially operational in 2022. It can accommodate 342,000 passengers daily.