140 buses deployed for passengers affected by MRT Holy Week shutdown
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) deployed about 140 buses Monday for passengers affected by the annual general maintenance shutdown of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) for the entire Holy Week.
In a statement, the DOTr said the participating public utility buses which will be identified with proper signages would be deployed
from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. starting April 15 to 17 (Holy Monday to Holy Wednesday) and April 20 and 21(Black Saturday to Easter Sunday) following the shutdown of the MRT railway line from North Avenue to Taft Avenue and vice versa.
The MRT-3 will resume normal operations on April 22 at 5:30 a.m., the DOTr said
“Bus fares will be based on the MRT-3 fare matrix, provided that the passenger’s destination is anywhere along the rail line. However, destinations beyond the line will follow the normal bus fares,” the DOTr added.
The staging areas for the buses will be at West Avenue corner EDSA, Quezon City for southbound passengers and Roxas Boulevard corner EDSA in Pasay City for northbound passengers.
The deployment of the buses was conducted by the DOTr, in coordination with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), MRT-3, Land Transportation Office, Metropolitan Manila Development
Authority, and Inter-Agency Council for Traffic.
The MRT-3 shutdown will make way for the maintenance works that includes “replacement of critical turnouts or switches, rail grinding, structural testing, topographic survey, and monitoring plan activities for MRT-3 structures.”
“Preventive and repair activities aim to improve the reliability of the system, which the agency shall implement in parallel with the comprehensive rehabilitation and overhaul of the entire MRT-3 system,” the DOTr said. (With a report from PNA)