MRT-3 Logs Record-high Single-day Ridership of 400,000 Since June 2020

The Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) served a total of 400,182 passengers on Feb. 1, its highest ever since resuming operations on June 1, 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) MRT-3's official Facebook account yesterday, the train line recorded 396,345 passengers on Jan. 20, which was then the highest number of passengers since June 2020. This was later exceeded by the MRT-3 ridership on Wednesday.

MRT-3 Director for Operations Engr. Oscar Bongon said in the release that the maintenance of the train carriages is continuous and that all had undergone overhauling.

The MRT-3's rehabilitation was completed in December 2021, which saw the trains return to their highest operating speed of 60 kilometers per hour from 30 kph. The headway for the trains was also reduced to four to four-and-a-half minutes from the usual eight to nine-and-a-half minutes during peak hours. The travel time from North Avenue Station to Taft Avenue Station also decreased to 30 to 35 minutes from one hour and 15 minutes, added DOTr.

Although wearing of face masks is now voluntary throughout the Philippines, train passengers are still required to don their masks at all times. Passengers are also prohibited from talking on the phone, eating, drinking, and smoking while inside the carriage.