Today, April 25, The agreement between the MRT and AFP to give all active AFP personnel MRT free rides will take effect.
That will be MRT-3.
The MRT Free Ride for all active military personnel is by virtue of a memorandum of agreement signed between the Department of Transportation/MRT-3 Management and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
The MRT Free Ride was given as a token of gratitude and appreciation to all active military personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
The Department of Transportation Secretary said that the free train ride is a way of recognizing the sacrifices of the military.
In return, the AFP will be providing the DOTr-MRT-3 media mileage through its Civil Service Relations-AFP (CRS-AFP) office, as well as ambulance and medical teams for assistance during emergency and crisis situations upon advance coordination and when available.
Last year, an MOA was also approved and signed between the AFP and the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA), granting all uniformed personnel free rides until December 2018 at the LRT-2 as a gesture of appreciation for the soldiers who risked their lives during the Marawi City siege.
All that active military personnel will do when going to an MRT-3 station to ride is show their AFP identification cards.
Metro Rail Transit System (MRT Line 3) runs in an orbital north-to-south route following the alignment of the Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA).
MRT 3 is currently running 15 trains and these trains are fast compared to buses and cars in Metro Manila which is prone to traffic.
The MRT management is targeting a functioning 20 trains to better serve the riding public.
Imagine if 20 trains were fully functional, perhaps the waiting time for the passengers will be reduced to less than 5 minutes.
20 functioning MRT trains are projected to carry as many as 540,000 passengers daily.
So the brave and courageous soldiers can ride these trains at ease and it is for free.