Heads Up, Here are the Buses You Can Take While LRT-2 Is Closed

(SPOT.ph) The Light Rail Transit Line 2—which services around 200,000 passengers daily—was not able to resume the promised partial operations from Cubao station to Recto station today, October 7. Which means yes, we now have official proof that commuting in the Metro can actually still get worse. To help commuters, over 50 buses and public utility vehicles have been deployed by both the Light Rail Transit Authority and the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to ferry passengers from the Santolan station to Cubao, but there's no word yet on whether this service will extend to the rest of the stations.

Thirty buses and 20 public utility vehicles were said to be readied for today's onslaught by the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA). Loading and unloading bays have been designated in front of the Santolan station and below the Cubao station. Fares are set from P12 to P15 and these shuttles will be available from 5 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., according to a Facebook post by the LRTA.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority has also deployed four buses to help stranded passengers get from Santolan to Cubao and vice versa. From 5 a.m. till 7 p.m., these buses will be free of charge. Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) spokesperson Celine Pialago has said buses should arrive every 30 to 40 minutes. 

"We did our best but due to the complexity of the problem, we were not able to complete the test runs and safety checks of the telecommunication system today," said Reynaldo Berroya, Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) administrator. in the agency's Facebook post about the delay. Several stations of the LRT-2 will be under repair for the next nine months after a fire broke out between the Anonas and Katipunan stations on October 3. Here's hoping some reprieve is coming soon!

Main image from Department of Transportation - Philippines Facebook page.