LRT, MRT, PNR halt ops starting Maundy Thursday

Commuters in Metro Manila and surrounding provinces will have to make do with a "train-less" travel for several days of the Holy Week — starting Maundy Thursday — because major railway stations will stop its operations. In separate advisories, the Light Railway Transit (LRT), the Metro Railway Transit (MRT), and the Philippine National Railways (PNR) said they would be taking advantage of the Holy Week to carry out maintenance check on their systems. Operations at the Light Railway Transit (LRT) and the Metro Railway Transit (MRT) will be temporarily suspended from April 1 to 4 (Maundy Thursday to Easter Sunday). Normal operations resume on Monday, April 5. Covered by the operation halt are both LRT Line 1 (Yellow Line), a 19-station railway line that runs from Monumento in Caloocan City to Baclaran in Pasay City; and LRT Line 2 (Purple Line), an 11-station railway line that runs from Recto in Manila to Santolan in Marikina City. The MRT Line 3, which goes through 13 stations, runs along the busy EDSA from Recto in Pasay City to North Avenue in Quezon City. PNR Meanwhile, the PNR will suspend its operations in its Tutuban-Biñan Line from April 1 to 3 (Maundy Thursday to Black Saturday). Operations will resume on Easter Sunday, altough intervals for each train arrivals will get longer from the usual 30 minutes to two hours. The 16-station PNR line starts from Tutuban in Manila and reaches Alabang in Muntinlupa City. A non-airconditioned train extends its trips to five more station south from Alabang all the way to Biñan in Laguna. In its railway in the Bicol Region, the PNR will suspend its operations from Maundy Thursday all the way to Easter Sunday. Operations will resume Monday next week. — Mark Merueñas/RSJ, GMANews.TV