LAS Piñas Lone District Rep. Mark Anthony Santos yesterday questioned whether Acting Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Giovanni Lopez was serious or merely joking when he suggested that the government could proceed with constructing only two of the three remaining stations under the LRT-1 Cavite Extension Project, effectively leaving out the proposed Las Piñas Station.
Santos made the statement after Lopez said he would order the continuation of construction up to the Zapote and Niog stations if negotiations with the Villar Group fail, even if it means bypassing the Las Piñas Station.
During a radio interview on Thursday, Lopez said the government would proceed with the construction of the LRT-1 Cavite Extension all the way to Zapote and Niog, while deferring the construction of the Las Piñas Station.
“Is the Acting Transportation Secretary serious, or is he making a joke? How can the government build the Zapote and Niog stations while skipping the Las Piñas Station, which lies along the same railway alignment?” Santos asked.
The lawmaker dismissed the proposal as impractical, saying it defies basic railway engineering and common sense.
“Where in the world do you find a railway line with its tracks cut off in the middle, only for the train to suddenly stop because it has reached a dead end? What the heck!” Santos said.
He also questioned how commuters would benefit from such an arrangement.
“Does Secretary Lopez really expect passengers boarding the LRT-1 in Niog, Cavite to get off at the Zapote Station, ride a jeepney to Dr. Santos Station in Parañaque, and then board another train to continue to Baclaran? Is that the government’s idea of an efficient railway system?” Santos asked.
Phase one of the LRT-1 Cavite Extension opened on November 16, 2024, adding five new southward stations from Pasay City to Parañaque City: Redemptorist-Aseana, MIA Road, PITX, Ninoy Aquino Avenue, and Dr. Santos.
Santos said bypassing the Las Piñas Station would fundamentally undermine the original design and purpose of the LRT-1 Cavite Extension Project while depriving hundreds of thousands of Las Piñas residents and commuters of direct access to the railway system.
“The government’s responsibility is to complete the entire LRT-1 Cavite Extension as originally planned—not to eliminate a station simply because the remaining right-of-way issues have yet to be resolved,” Santos said.
He urged the DOTr to focus on resolving the remaining right-of-way issues through lawful, transparent, and decisive action instead of proposing what he described as an incomplete and impractical implementation of the project.
“Why should the people of Las Piñas be punished by losing their own LRT-1 station?” Santos asked.
He said there is no justification for bypassing the Las Piñas Station when the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) itself has acknowledged that the delay in completing the remaining phase of the multibillion-peso railway project stemmed from alignment changes after the construction of the C-5 Road Extension flyover along the C-5 Extension–Quirino Avenue corridor.
According to Santos, the flyover obstructed the original railway alignment, forcing the LRTA to redesign the route and relocate the planned station. The revised alignment required the acquisition of private properties, resulting in prolonged right-of-way negotiations that have delayed the implementation of Phases 2 and 3 of the project.
“The residents of Las Piñas should not be made to suffer because of planning and right-of-way problems that were beyond their control. Is Secretary Lopez under pressure from a powerful family in the city that he is now willing to bypass the Las Piñas Station altogether?” Santos asked.
He noted that the LRTA, DOTr, and Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) have been negotiating for years with the affected property owners to secure the necessary land through either a Deed of Donation or a Right-of-Way Usage Agreement (ROWUA).
Santos said the government’s priority should be to resolve the remaining right-of-way issues and complete the entire LRT-1 Cavite Extension Project as originally planned—not to deprive Las Piñas residents of the station they were promised.
“Las Piñas commuters deserve the same access to modern and efficient public transportation as every other community along the LRT-1 alignment. The solution is to complete the railway—not to abandon an entire city by removing its station,” Santos said.
metrosundaily
