The Department of Transportation (DOTr) announced that the portion of Meralco Avenue in Pasig City will be closed until 2028 for the construction of the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP).
The north- and south-bound lanes of Meralco Avenue near Capitol Commons will not be accessible to motorists starting 9 p.m. on October 3, 2022. This is to make way for the construction of the MMSP’s Shaw Boulevard Station.
The said road will be closed until 2028, and will cover the front section of Capitol Commons (near Estancia Mall) up to the corner of Shaw Boulevard. The DOTr added that the said portion of Meralco Avenue will serve as the MMSP’s access point to the upcoming Shaw Boulevard Station.
The Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), and the City Governments of Pasig and Mandaluyong have released alternate routes. Motorists are advised to take the following routes:
Public Utility Jeepneys (PUJs)
From Meralco Avenue going to Shaw Boulevard will be rerouted to Captain Henry Javier St. to Danny Floro St., and vice versa.
Modernized Jeepneys
From Meralco Avenue going to Shaw Boulevard will be rerouted to Doña Julia Vargas Avenue to San Miguel Avenue, and vice versa.
UV Express Vehicles
From Meralco Avenue going to Shaw Boulevard will be rerouted to Doña Julia Vargas Avenue to San Miguel Avenue or Anda Road to Camino Verde.
Private Vehicles
All available routes are accessible
The MMSP is hailed as the “Project of the Century.” It will be the country’s first underground mass transit system, which is said to be a “modern railway system that will be at par with the rest in the world.”
The subway project is funded by the Japanese government. It’s a 33-kilometer railway that will stretch from Valenzuela City to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City. The MMSP is seen to reduce travel time between Quezon City and NAIA to just 35 minutes.
Once completed, the 33-km subway will run through eight cities in Metro Manila, passing three central business districts, and service up to 370,000 passengers daily.
There will be 17 subway stations, which will be the following:
- East Valenzuela
- Quirino Highway
- Tandang Sora
- North Avenue
- Quezon Avenue
- East Avenue
- Anonas
- Camp Aguinaldo
- Ortigas
- Shaw
- Kalayaan Avenue
- Bonifacio Global City
- Lawton
- Senate-DepEd
- NAIA Terminal 3
- FTI
- Bicutan
The construction of the Metro Manila Subway is in full swing, and the DOTr previously said that the partial opening of the subway was this year. However, it was moved to 2025 due to the constraints brought upon by the COVID-19 pandemic.
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