ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Marcos launches student Beep card with 50% discount, vows 3-minute processing for new applicants

Marcos launches student Beep card with 50% discount, vows 3-minute processing for new applicants

Published Sep 20, 2025 11:48 am  |  Updated Sep 20, 2025 01:20 pm
President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. leads the ceremonial launch of the Student Beep Card at the LRT Line 2 Legarda Station in Manila on Sept. 20, 2025. Joining him were Department of Transportation Officer-in-Charge Giovanni Lopez and LRTA Administrator Hernando Cabrera. This special card grants students a 50-percent fare discount on LRT-1, LRT-2, and MRT-3 trains, automatically applying the reduced rate each time it is tapped at the turnstile. (Mark Balmores)
President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. leads the ceremonial launch of the Student Beep Card at the LRT Line 2 Legarda Station in Manila on Sept. 20, 2025. Joining him were Department of Transportation Officer-in-Charge Giovanni Lopez and LRTA Administrator Hernando Cabrera. This special card grants students a 50-percent fare discount on LRT-1, LRT-2, and MRT-3 trains, automatically applying the reduced rate each time it is tapped at the turnstile. (Mark Balmores)
President Ferdinand Marcos has led the launch of the new student Beep card in Manila, granting half-fare rates on train rides while cutting processing time from more than a week to just three minutes.
During the launch at the Legarda LRT-2 Station in Manila on Saturday, Sept. 20, the President said the initiative ensures students can now travel more affordably, citing the Cubao–Recto route that normally costs P25 but is reduced to P12.50 under the new system.
“Napakalaking tulong yan, dahil alam naman natin (This is a big help because we know) our students are on a very, very tight budget,” he said.
Marcos added that processing has been improved. Students who will apply for it are only required to show proof of enrollment to get their card instantly. Previously, applicants had to wait seven to ten days for release.
The application process for the student Beep card includes the presentation of a valid ID, encoding and image capturing, signing of an acknowledgment form, a one-time fee of P30, and card printing and issuance — all in three minutes, as the President claimed.
“[From] seven to 10 days processing, ngayong three minutes na lang (down to three minutes now),” he said.
The government also introduced a more convenient loading system, allowing students to top up their Beep cards using digital platforms such as GCash and PayPal.
“Hindi na sila kailangan bumalik dito para mag-load (They do not need to return here to load their card),” he noted.
President Marcos stressed that the program will continue to be monitored and refined.
“We will watch and see kung ano pa ang kailangan nung gawin. Siyempre, merong tayong kailangang i-fine-tune dyan. Pero patuloy nating pinag-aaralan (We will watch and see what else we can do. Of course, it will need fine-tuning. We will continue studying it),” he said.
The President said the Beep card expansion builds on earlier transport discounts and free rides extended to senior citizens and persons with disabilities. He framed the program as part of his administration’s broader effort to modernize public transportation.
“Patuloy ang pag-modernize natin sa ating sistema ng transportasyon para naman… lahat ng sumasakay ng tren, lahat ng sumasakay ng public transport, ay maging mas magaan naman *We continue to modernize our transport system so those riding public transport will have a more convenient experience),” he said.
Marcos also underscored the importance of supporting students, whom he described as the country’s “most important asset.”
“We look forward to the advantages it will bring to our students, our young people,” he added.
With a lighthearted joke, Marcos quipped that students may now run out of reasons for tardiness.
“Wala na kayong excuse maging late. Madalas sasabihin, hindi po sir, kasi ang haba ng pila sa LRT. Ay wala na (You won’t have an excuse to be late. Before you always say it’s because of the long queue. That’s no longer the case),” he said.

Related Tags

President Marcos Bongbong Marcos Beep card student discount public transport
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.