Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 17) — The government is currently unable to use nearly 80 train cars it bought during the Duterte administration for the LRT Line 1 due to water leaks, according to a transportation official.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary for Railways Cesar Chavez bared this on Thursday, saying the Marcos administration decided in July to suspend payments for the billions of pesos worth of light rail vehicles delivered by a private contractor in 2021.
“Nung dumating ho dito ay hindi po natin nagagamit sapagkat ang otsenta na dumating sa ating bansa ay may water leak,” he told a House committee hearing.
[Translation: When the train cars arrived, we could not use them because of water leaks.]
When asked to confirm if all 80 vehicles are defective, Chavez said, “Most of them. In fact, in the report, halos lahat po sila [nearly all of them].”
According to the official, the vehicles were manufactured for Mitsubishi by Spanish firm Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, S.A.
The 80 are part of 120 train cars under a ₱12-billion procurement deal for the LRT-1, particularly for the Cavite Extension project, when the DOTr was headed by former Secretary Arthur Tugade. The remaining 40 have yet to be delivered.
Citing restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the official admitted that the DOTr waived the right to inspect the railway cars for defects before their delivery to the Philippines.
“Nangyari po ito sa panahon ng pandemic na hindi nakapagpadala ang ating pamahalaan para sa factory acceptance test,” Chavez explained.
[Translation: This happened during the pandemic when our government wasn’t able to send anyone for a factory acceptance test.]
“Ang tingin ko dapat sinuspend muna (ang delivery) kung hindi naman mai-inspect,” he also said.
Chavez told lawmakers they have already ordered the contractor to fix the defects as soon as possible.
He also clarified that the firm will shoulder the expenses needed to repair the train cars.
He noted that the government has already paid around ₱6 billion and has yet to give the balance of another ₱6 billion pending rectification of the defects.
“Hindi pa po tapos ang kontrata, and therefore, may panahon pa po sila na i-rectify [The contract is not yet finished, and therefore, they still have time to rectify this],” he said.
Chavez added that he is leaving it to the “appropriate office” in the DOTr to determine if any official should be held responsible over the matter.
The agency is also looking at the possibility of filing a complaint for liquidated damages against the contractor.
For now, however, he said the department’s priority is to have the rolling stock fixed so they can be used in LRT-1 and eventually, the railway line’s extension from Baclaran to Bacoor, Cavite.
The department expects partial operations of the LRT-1 extension to start in the third quarter of 2024.
The one-and-a-half-hour travel time from Baclaran to Bacoor would be reduced to 25 minutes once the railway line is fully operational, it said.
CNN Philippines Correspondent Xianne Arcangel contributed to this report.
