San Miguel plans RP’s first bullet train project

San Miguel Corp. (SMC) has set its sights on what could probably be its most ambitious and expensive project to date as it spearheads the Philippines’ bid to become the first country in Southeast Asia to build and operate a bullet train.

As planned, the bullet train railway will run the Laoag-Manila-Bicol route. As for the right-of-way acquisitions, Ang said this will be up to the government.

He revealed that they hope to submit their unsolicited proposal to government by the end of the year.

Travel

from Manila to Laoag takes around 12 hours by land. The Philippine National Railways (PNR) has a train service that runs the Manila-Bicol route – the Bicol Express which carries as much as 20,000 passengers daily – although it has not been operational for three years due to heavy damage wrought by typhoons. There are plans to resume operations before President Arroyo’s term ends.

Both the Manila to Laoag and Manila to Bicol lines are also currently accessible by air and there are public buses that ply the two routes.

Running speeds of as fast as 300 kilometers per hour, a bullet train can cut travel time to the far ends of Luzon from Manila significantly. Fares are also expected to be cheaper than plane fares but higher than bus fares.

With SMC’s plan, the Philippines will be pitted against Vietnam in the bid to build Southeast Asia’s first bullet train.

The Vietnam project is estimated to cost $56 million and may choose either the group of Sumitomo Corp. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd, or Itochu Corp. and Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd, all Japanese companies, for the project. The two groups currently run lines in Japan similar to what would be built in Vietnam. (article by Mary Ann Reyes, philstar.com)

Well, I just hope this project will eventually push through. I am a bit confident since the project will be facilitated mostly by the private company. Im so tired hearing delays and red tape stories on several mothballed government projects in the past that have created so much negative images about the Philippines