DOTr to study solon's pitch of extending MRT-7 to Norzagaray
At A Glance
- The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has told the House of Representatives that it will look into the possibility of stretching the Metro Rail Transit-7 (MRT-7) up to Norzagaray, Bulacan.
Bulacan 6th district Rep. Salvador Pleyto (Pleyto)
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) has told the House of Representatives that it will look into the possibility of stretching the Metro Rail Transit-7 (MRT-7) up to Norzagaray, Bulacan.
DOTr Secretary Jaime Bautista made the commitment to carry out such study during the House Committee on Appropriations' recent deliberation on the agency's 2024 budget.
The promise stemmed from a request by Bulacan 6th district Rep. Salvador Pleyto to see to it if Norzagaray was a viable endpoint for MRT-7. Currently, the design of MRT-7 covers 22.8 kilometers from North Triangle Common Station in North Avenue, Quezon City up to San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
“Masayang masaya po kami sa aming distrito at sa buong lalawigan ng Bulacan dahil agad-agad po na sinagutan tayo ni secretary na magandang suhestyon at isasama na sa plano ang nasabing MRT station," Pleyto said.
(The people from my district and from the entire province of Bulacan are very happy that the secretary immediately responded to our suggestion to include the said MRT station [Norzagaray] in the plan.)
"I just want to know what are the steps taken to include Norzagaray to the said plan?” asked the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) undersecretary-turned-congressman.
To this, DOTr Undersecretary Timothy Batan said there's actually an allocation in the agency's 2024 budget that facilitates the conduct of a feasibility study. This is aside from the project preparation loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), he said.“Dyan po natin kukunin yung pondo para po pag-aralan itong posibilidad po na magkaroon ng further extension po pa-norte, pa-Norzagaray po ng MRT-7 (From there, we will get the funds for studying the possibility to further extend the MRT-7 northward, to Norzagaray)," Batan said.