The construction of the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) extension to Cavite may begin soon after the Villar family expressed openness to donate its property for the project, according to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez said the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) is expected to resolve all right-of-way (ROW) issues related to the LRT-1 Cavite Extension project soon, including those involving the two stations that will be built on Villar property.

“As a matter of fact, the Villar family wants to donate their property as part of the extension,” he said in an interview on DZRH.

Lopez said the government and the Villars are now in talks to reach a final agreement on the donation of the property to the LRTA.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said his office is investigating allegations that Senators Mark and Camille Villar are intervening in the project to realign the railway near their properties.

Lopez said that, based on reports submitted to him, there is no truth to these claims. In reality, he said the LRTA has already acquired the ROW for the entire railway alignment, except for certain sites, such as those for the two stations.

Under the second phase of the Cavite extension project, the private operator of LRT-1 is expected to build the Las Piñas and Zapote stations.

Both stations will be constructed on land owned by the Villar family, which is already occupied by the C5-Quirino flyover built by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Las Piñas lone district Rep. Mark Anthony Santos earlier proposed demolishing the flyover to make way for the construction of the extension.

While there are merits to the proposal, Lopez said there is a need to conduct a traffic study first to determine whether it would be appropriate to dismantle the flyover, especially since it only opened in 2024.

Since the infrastructure project was designed to ease traffic in the first place, he said the best option for the government is to let it "coexist" with the LRT-1 extension.

Once the LRTA acquires the ROW for the property, it will be handed over to Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) for design and construction.

The LRTA has already completed the ROW acquisition for the third phase of the project, which covers the Niog station in Bacoor.

Lopez was recently ordered by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to immediately resolve the remaining ROW issues affecting the LRT-1 Cavite Extension project, which was earlier slated for completion in 2028.

Only the first phase of the project has been completed so far, adding five stations to the railway in 2024. The extension of the LRT-1 to Bacoor will bring the total number of stations to 28.

Once fully operational, the extended LRT-1 is expected to serve up to 800,000 passengers daily from the current average daily ridership of around 440,000.