LIGHT RAILWAY TRANSIT

1984 saw the birth of the first light railway transit in our country, popularly known as the METRORAIL. Owned by a new government agency named Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA), the Me­trorail is one of the government's solu­tions to decongest the major traffic routes of the capital city. Designed to run on elevated rails above and along existing major roads, the Metrorail effectively expands road space without eating up extra land area.

The first line in the light rail system goes through the heart of Metropolitan Manila, extending from Baclaran, Parañaque in the south through congested Taft and Rizal Avenues, to Monumento, Ca-loocan City in the north. The total length of the first line is 16 kilometers.

The Taft-Rizal line was constructed first because it covers the most heavily-traveled route, thus easing the traffic problem not only along the line but also along nearby major roads.

The system starts service from 4:00 in the morning to 10:00 P.M. daily. Be­cause the track is elevated six meters above road level and the system runs on electricity, travel time is cut by three-fourths. For example, it takes only thirty minutes to travel from Bonifacio Monu­mento (Caloocan) to Baclaran (Paranaque)