History
The Megatren system was built at a cost of P31 billion in soft loans mainly from former Japan Bank for International Cooperation (current Japan International Cooperation Agency). This was a very concessional loan, with 2 percent interest for three packages, and payable for 30 years with a 10-year grace period.
The Asia Europe MRT Consortium, led by the Marubeni Corporation, has delivered 18 new four - car trains. Each train is 92.6 meters long and consists of four motorized cars. One train can seat 232 passengers. It can accommodate 1,396 more standing passengers along its spacious coaches. Compared with the previous rail projects, MRT-2 was more difficult to build because of highly technical problems. Several international companies participated in the project, which consists of four contract packages. Package 1 is the depot in Santolan, Pasig where the 18 trains are stabled, and where the employees quarters, and offices are based. Package 2 consists of the substructures, mainly the railways foundations including the columns and pilings that support the guideways. Package 3 forms the superstructure composed of the girders, or beams that support the train rails, the viaduct, and the train stations. Package 4 includes the electro-mechanical systems, the rolling stocks, the track works, including the network of cables and poles that transmit power to the trains.
The pre-casting segmental method (PSM), was used in building the viaduct or the long stretch of suspension bridges resting on the concrete towers. The Megatren Line 2 project pioneered the use of the PSM technology or the pre-casting of the girders into smaller segments so that each span connected between two columns weigh not more than 58 tons.
On April 5, 2003, the initial section, from Santolan to Araneta Center-Cubao opened, followed on exactly after one year which is April 5, 2004, from Araneta Center-Cubao to Legarda and finally on October 29, 2004 the final segment from Legarda to Recto opened.
Read more about this topic: Manila LRT Purple Line
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