MRT-3 trips resume today

BY ALEXANDRIA SAN JUAN

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The Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) will resume its operations on a limited capacity today, July 13, after the line’s management was able to gather a sufficient number of employees who tested negative for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

In a statement, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) said that a total of 1,093 depot personnel and 1,010 station personnel of the MRT-3 tested negative for the respiratory disease, as of Saturday.

These numbers, the DOTr added, exceeded the required 1,308 personnel to resume train operations on a limited number of train sets.

“On Monday, the MRT-3 will be dispatching 12 train sets, which will include 10 CKD train sets and two Dalian train sets. The first train set will be dispatched at 5:30 a.m. from the North Avenue station to the Taft Avenue station,” the department said.

In addition, passengers will be required to fill-up health declaration forms before boarding the train.

Operations of the MRT-3, one of the busiest railways in the metropolis, have been suspended since July 6 to give way for the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction or RT-PCR testing of all its employees.

This was after 281 personnel of the MRT-3 contracted COVID-19, including depot and station staff, ticket sellers, employees of Sumitomo-MHI-TESP, its maintenance provider and its subcontractors, and other service providers.