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Infrastructure · Urban Rail

Metro Manila Subway

Reference entry · last updated September 24, 2026

Metro Manila Subway, designated MRT-9 and also known as the Mega Manila Subway, is a 33-kilometer underground rapid transit line under construction across Metro Manila in the Philippines, running from East Valenzuela in the north to Bicutan in the south with a spur line serving NAIA Terminal 3.[3] The line is owned and operated by the Department of Transportation (DOTr).[3] It carries 17 stations and is the first underground railway in the country.[1] It is funded largely through official development assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).[2]

First principles: underground alignment

The Metro Manila Subway is planned as an underground railway.[3]

A rider travelling the full alignment end to end is expected to cover the distance from Valenzuela to Bicutan in 46 minutes, and the Valenzuela to NAIA trip is projected to fall from about 1 hour and 30 minutes to 40 minutes.[1][2]

Route and stations

The line is planned as 17 stations along 33 kilometers, from East Valenzuela in the north to Bicutan in the south.[1] The table below reproduces the station list and the approximate locations published by Rappler.[1]

NAIA Terminal 3 appears in the published station list between Senate-DepEd and FTI/Arca South, but it is served by a spur line rather than by the through route.[1]

The NAIA Terminal 3 spur

The main alignment runs from East Valenzuela to Bicutan. A separate spur line branches to NAIA Terminal 3, which connects the country's principal airport to a railway for the first time.[1] The Terminal 3 station is part of Contract Package 109, which also covers the construction of connecting tunnels between Taguig City and Pasay City.[2]

Ground was broken for the NAIA Terminal 3 station on September 16, 2026.[2]

Design and rolling stock

The alignment is 33 kilometers long, entirely underground, and double-track, with a depot at Ugong in Valenzuela.[3] Track gauge is 1,435 millimeters (standard gauge), electrification is at 1,500 volts DC through overhead lines, and the operating speed is 80 kilometers per hour.[3]

Rolling stock is the Sustina electric multiple unit series, and signalling is the Nippon Signal SPARCS moving-block communications-based train control (CBTC) system.[3] The project also uses underpinning technology from Japan, which allows construction to proceed beneath existing infrastructure while maintaining its structural integrity.[2]

Interchanges

Four verified interchanges appear in the published station data:

• Anonas: the station sits near the LRT-2 Anonas station, providing a transfer to the LRT-2 line.[1]
• Senate-DepEd: the station is described as being near the NSCR Nichols station.[1]
• FTI/Arca South: the station is integrated with the NSCR FTI station.[1]
• Bicutan: the station is a common station with the NSCR extension.[1]

Route diagrams elsewhere show links from the North Avenue and Quezon Avenue stations to other rail lines. Those links are not confirmed by the sources cited on this page and are therefore not stated as interchanges here.

Cost and funding

The project is expected to cost 355.6 billion pesos, equivalent to about USD 7.06 billion at 2017 exchange rates.[3] Much of that cost is covered by loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and the project is described by the DOTr as JICA-funded.[3][2]

Construction is procured in contract packages. Contract Package 109 covers the NAIA Terminal 3 station and the connecting tunnels between Taguig City and Pasay City.[2] Contract Package 108, which covers the subway section connecting the new Senate building to Lawton in Taguig City, was still under procurement as of September 2026.[2]

Construction status

On September 16, 2026, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the project had reached nearly 60 percent overall progress, with construction activities underway across much of the alignment.[2] Wikipedia records the DOTr reporting an overall status of 60 percent and a physical construction progress of approximately 32 percent as of July 2026.[3]

The right of way process is reported as 90 percent complete, and the right of way for the entire station area was described as secured.[3][2] One of the most difficult acquisition problems involved properties inside Corinthian Gardens subdivision in Quezon City; the DOTr states that it was resolved following the enactment of Republic Act 12289, the Accelerated and Reformed Right-of-Way (ARROW) Act, with the private owners agreeing to a negotiated sale.[2]

DOTr Acting Secretary Giovanni Z. Lopez said in September 2026 that the project remains on track for completion by 2031, with operations expected to begin the following year.[2] Wikipedia lists the planned opening for Phase 1 as 2032.[3]

Projected ridership

The two cited sources give different ridership projections, and both are reported here rather than reconciled.

• Wikipedia records a projected daily ridership of 370,000 passengers in the short term.[3]
• The Philippine Resources Journal reports the DOTr projection of between 400,000 and 800,000 passengers daily once the subway is fully operational, attributed to Acting Secretary Lopez.[2]

Timeline

See also

• Theory of Constraints
• Queueing Theory for Software Delivery
• First Principles (Learning Method)

References

1. ↑ Lance Spencer Yu, “MAP: Metro Manila Subway stations,” Rappler. https://www.rappler.com/business/map-metro-manila-subway-stations/
2. ↑ “Metro Manila Subway construction reaches nearly 60%,” Philippine Resources Journal, September 2026. https://www.philippine-resources.com/articles/2026/9/metro-manila-subway-construction-reaches-nearly-60
3. ↑ “Metro Manila Subway,” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_Manila_Subway