MRT Line 3 (Metro Manila)

The Metro Rail Transit Line 3, also known as the MRT Line 3, MRT-3, or Metrostar Express, is a rapid transit line in Metro Manila in the Philippines. The line runs in an orbital north to south route following the alignment of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA). Despite its name, the line is more akin to a light rapid transit system owing to its tram-like rolling stock while having total grade separation and high passenger throughput. The line is officially known as the Yellow Line.
Envisioned in the 1970s and 1980s as part of various feasibility studies, the 13-station, 16.9-kilometer (10.5 mi) line was the second rapid transit line to be built in Metro Manila when it started full operations in 2000. The line is owned by the Metro Rail Transit Corporation (MRTC) under a 25-year build–lease–transfer agreement with the Philippine government's Department of Transportation (DOTr), who operates the line.
The line is integrated with the public transit system in Metro Manila, where passengers also take various forms of road-based public transport, such as buses, to and from a station to reach their intended destination. Serving close to 375,000 passengers on a daily basis, the line is the busiest among Metro Manila's three rapid transit lines. Total ridership significantly exceeds its built maximum capacity of 350,000 passengers a day, with various solutions being proposed or implemented to alleviate chronic congestion. Expanding the network's capacity to accommodate the rising number of passengers is currently set on tackling this problem.
In 1973, the Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency (OTCA; predecessor of the Japan International Cooperation Agency) presented a plan to construct five subway lines in Metro Manila. The study was known as the Urban Transport Study in the Manila Metropolitan Area. One of the five lines, Line 3, was planned as a 24.3-kilometer (15.1 mi) line along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), the region's busiest road corridor. The plan would have resolved the traffic problems of Metro Manila and would have taken 15 years to complete.
Another study by JICA was presented in 1976 which included the five lines proposed in 1973. The study recommended heavy rail due to the rising population.
During the construction of the first line of the Manila Light Rail Transit System in the early 1980s, Electrowatt Engineering Services of Zürich designed a comprehensive plan for metro service in Metro Manila. The plan—still used as the basis for planning new metro lines—consisted of a 150-kilometer (93 mi) network of rapid transit lines spanning all major corridors within 20 years. The study integrated the previous 1973 OTCA study, the 1976 JICA study, and the 1977 Freeman Fox and Associates study, which was used as the basis for the LRT Line 1.
The project was restarted as a light rail project in 1989. DOTC planned to construct a light railway transit line along EDSA, a major thoroughfare in Metropolitan Manila, which would traverse Quezon City, San Juan, Mandaluyong, Makati, and Pasay. The plan, referred to as EDSA Light Rail Transit III (EDSA LRT III), was intended to provide a mass transit system along EDSA and alleviate the congestion and growing transportation problems in the metropolis. On March 3, 1990, a letter of intent was sent by Eli Levin Enterprises, Inc., represented by Elijahu Levin, to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), now Department of Transportation (DOTr), secretary Oscar Orbos, proposing to construct the EDSA LRT III on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.
On July 9, 1990, President Corazon Aquino signed Republic Act No. 6957, simply known as the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Law; it took exactly three months later. The government then published an invitation to pre-qualify and bid for the project on February 21, 1991. Five groups responded to the invitation: ABB Trazione of Italy, Hopewell Holdings Ltd. of Hong Kong, Mansteel International of Mandaue, Cebu, Mitsui & Co., Ltd. of Japan, and EDSA LRT Consortium, composed of ten foreign and domestic corporations. EDSA LRT Consortium was the sole firm that passed the pre-qualification process, and submitted its proposal to the DOTC on July 16. The Build-lease-Transfer (BLT) agreement was signed on November 7.
On September 22, 1992, DOTC and EDSA LRT Corporation signed a revised and restated BLT Agreement. The new BLT Agreement defined the project coverage in two phases: Phase 1, which spanned 16 kilometers (9.9 mi) between North Avenue, Quezon City and Taft Avenue, Pasay, and Phase II, which spanned 5.5 kilometers (3.4 mi) from North Avenue to Monumento, Caloocan. The project was approved by the Cabinet on January 19, 1993. On May 6 of that same year, the project was launched by President Fidel V. Ramos. According to the agreements, the line would use light rail vehicles from the Czech and Slovak Federal Republics and will have a maximum carrying capacity of 450,000 passengers a day, or 150 million a year to be achieved, through 54 such vehicles operating simultaneously. The EDSA LRT III will run at grade, or street level, on the mid-section of EDSA for a distance of 17.8 kilometers (11.1 mi) from F.B. Harrison, Pasay, to North Avenue, Quezon City. The system will have its own power facility. It will also have thirteen (13) passenger stations and one depot on 16-hectare (40-acre) government property at North Avenue.
However, construction could not commence, with the project stalled as the Philippine government conducted several investigations into alleged irregularities with the project's contract. The Supreme Court had a case barring Eli Levin from implementing the project in March 1994, and the bids were ABB and Mitsubishi Corporation, which also wanted to supply contracts. A year later, the Supreme Court upheld the regularity of the project which paved the way for construction to finally begin during the term of President Ramos.
A consortium of local companies, led by Fil-Estate Management was later joined by Ayala Land, and 5 others, later formed the Metro Rail Transit Corporation (MRTC) in June 1995 and took over the EDSA LRT Corporation.
On March 27, 1996, the unveiling marker was attended by President Ramos and others. The MRTC was subsequently awarded a Build-Lease-Transfer contract by the DOTC, which meant that the latter would possess ownership of the system after the 25-year concession period. Meanwhile, the DOTC would assume all administrative functions, such as the regulation of fares and operations, leaving the MRTC responsibility over construction and maintenance of the system as well as the procurement of spare parts for trains. MRTC would later transfer the responsibility of maintaining the system to the DOTC in November 2010. In exchange, the DOTC would pay the MRTC monthly fees for a certain number of years to reimburse any incurred costs.
Construction began on October 15 of the same year, with a BLT agreement signed between the Philippine government and the MRTC. An amended turnkey agreement was later signed on September 16, 1997, with Sumitomo Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Sumitomo and Mitsubishi subcontracted EEI Corporation and AsiaKonstrukt for the civil works. A separate agreement was signed with ČKD Dopravní Systémy (ČKD Tatra, now part of Siemens AG), the leading builder of trams and light rail vehicles for the Eastern Bloc, on rolling stock. MRTC also retained the services of ICF Kaiser Engineers and Constructors to provide program management and technical oversight of the services for the design, construction management, and commissioning. MRTC would later sign a maintenance agreement with Sumitomo and Mitsubishi for the maintenance of the line on December 10 of the same year.
During construction, the MRTC oversaw the design, construction, equipping, testing, and commissioning, while the DOTC oversaw technical supervision of the project activities covered by the BLT contract between the DOTC and MRTC. The DOTC also sought the services of SYSTRA, a French consultant firm, with regards to the technical competence, experience and track record in the construction and operations.
On December 15, 1999, the initial section from North Avenue to Buendia was inaugurated by President Joseph Estrada, with all remaining stations opening on July 20, 2000, a little over a month past the original deadline, due to DOTC's inclusion of additional work orders such as the Tramo flyover in Pasay leading to Ninoy Aquino International Airport. However, ridership was initially far below expectations when the line was still partially open, with passengers complaining of the tickets' steep price and the general lack of connectivity of the stations with other modes of public transportation. Passengers' complaints of high ticket prices pointed to the maximum fare of ₱34 (equivalent to ₱79.21 in 2021), which at the time was significantly higher than a comparable journey on those lines operated by the LRTA and the PNR or a similar bus ride along EDSA. Although the MRTC projected 300,000–400,000 passengers riding the system daily, in the first month of operation the system saw a ridership of only 40,000 passengers daily (the ridership improved quickly, however, when passengers experienced significantly faster and convenient travel along EDSA, which experience soon spread by word of mouth). The system was also initially criticized as a white elephant, comparing it to the Manila Light Rail Transit System and the Metro Manila Skyway. To alleviate passenger complaints, the MRTC later reduced passenger fares to ₱15 (equivalent to ₱34.95 in 2021), as per the request of then-President Joseph Estrada and a subsequent government subsidy.
During the line's construction in 2000, Pasay residents raised concerns about the line being constructed at ground level, resulting in the closure of several intersections along EDSA, forcing people to take long detours just to cross EDSA. Residents also complained that they were not properly consulted about the line's construction in their area. The MRTC stated that the segment could not be made as an elevated railway due to the air rights above the LRT-1 already being awarded to the Department of Public Works and Highways for a flyover in 1996.
MRTC projected a capacity breach in the system by 2002. By 2004, the line had the highest ridership of the three lines, with 400,000 passengers daily. By early 2012, the system was carrying around 550,000 to 600,000 commuters during weekdays and was often badly overcrowded during peak times of access during the day and night. The line operated beyond its original designed capacity from 2004 to 2019. In 2011, Sumitomo, through TES Philippines, issued a warning about the overcrowding situation of the line, in which a failure to immediately upgrade the line's trains and systems would result in damage to the trains and systems.
By October 2012, DOTC removed Sumitomo as the maintenance provider of the line due to the high costs of the contract. With the entry of the joint venture of Philippine Trans Rail Management and Services Corporation (PH Trams) and Comm Builders & Technology Philippines Corporation (CB&T) as the maintenance provider in 2012, and APT Global in 2013, it marked the start of the deterioration of the line due to poor maintenance by the aforementioned maintenance providers that DOTC appointed. In 2014, there were reported daily incidents and disruptions, and a derailment of one train coach on August 13 of that year. The government of Benigno Aquino III had been planning to buy the line from the MRT Corporation (MRTC), the private concessionaire that built the line, and then bid it out to private bidders. The Aquino government accused the MRTC of neglecting and not improving the services of the line under its watch.
In February 2016, the Philippine Senate released a report stating that DOTC Secretary Jun Abaya and other DOTC officials "may have violated" the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act in relation to questionable contracts with the subsequent maintenance providers. In a Senate report where the line's condition was found to be in "poor maintenance" as per studies made by MTR HK, DOTC officials were reported to be involved in graft in relation to questionable contracts, especially those for the maintenance of the line.
The DOTC tried to bid out a three-year maintenance contract in 2014 and 2015, but both biddings failed because no bidders submitted a bid. Through a negotiated procurement, the Busan joint venture, a joint venture of Busan Transportation Corporation, Edison Development & Construction, Tramat Mercantile Inc., TMICorp Inc., and Castan Corporation, was awarded a three-year maintenance contract by the DOTC. The contract started in January 2016 and was slated to end by January 2019. In 2017, DOTC's succeeding agency, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) attributed the operation's disruptions of the rail system to the Busan joint venture, later known as Busan Universal Rail, Inc. (BURI), with DOTr Transport Undersecretary for Rails Cesar Chavez noting 98 service interruptions and 833 passenger unloadings (or average of twice daily) as well as train derailments in April–June 2017. BURI insisted that the disruptions the railway line was experiencing is due to "inherent design and quality concerns" and not to poor maintenance or normal tear or wear. It said that glitches started occurring since 2000, a claim that MRTC dismissed when Sumitomo was maintaining the system. The maintenance contract was terminated on November 6, 2017.
Due to the high ridership of the line, a proposal under study by the DOTC and NEDA proposed to double the current capacity by acquiring additional light rail vehicles to accommodate over 520,000 passengers a day.
In January 2014, the DOTC entered into a contract with CNR Dalian (later CRRC Dalian) for the procurement of 48 light rail vehicles. The trains, commonly referred to as the Dalian trains, entered revenue service in 2016, and would have allowed the line to handle over 800,000 passengers. However, several issues and controversies prevented the trains from mainline operations; CRRC Dalian agreed in 2018 to amend the train specifications to match the contract terms at no cost. Due to the trains undergoing the said adjustments, they were slowly introduced into regular operations, which led to the start of the gradual deployment on October 27, 2018.
Aside from the procurement of the new trains, the capacity expansion project included the upgrading of the ancillary systems such as the power supply, overhead lines, the extension of the pocket track near Taft Avenue station and the modification of the turn back siding north of the North Avenue station. The original plan also included the upgrading of the signaling system. These upgrades would only be realized as part of the line's rehabilitation.
Plans were also laid to increase the number of cars in each train set, from the current three cars to four, which also increases the number of passengers being accommodated for each trip, from 1,182 to 1,576. This was first mentioned in 2013, during the bidding process for the new trains. However, in January 2016, an anonymous railway expert warned that the power supply at that time was not capable of handling four-car operations. Despite this, four-car operations were first tested in a Dalian train in May 2016. After the rehabilitation of the line which included the upgrading of the power supply, a dynamic test run for the use of four-car trains for regular operations was conducted on March 9, 2022. Regular four-car operations began in the same month, initially deploying two trains for daily operations, subsequently increased to four. Although full conversion was initially planned to be achieved by 2023, all trains soon reverted to the existing 3-car configuration. Nevertheless, four-car operations are expected to start in June 2025, once the construction of the extended pocket track near Taft Avenue station is completed.
As early as 2011, proposals were laid to rehabilitate the line. An unsolicited proposal was made by Metro Pacific Investments in 2011 at a cost of ₱25.1 billion; MPIC submitted a revised proposal in 2014 at a cost of ₱23.3 billion. In 2017, in the wake of various daily service interruptions in the line, San Miguel Corporation expressed its interest to rehabilitate the line. That same year, Metro Pacific submitted another ₱20 billion proposal to rehabilitate, operate and maintain the line. These proposals however would be rejected by the government.
Following the termination of the maintenance contract with Busan Universal Rail, Inc., the DOTr announced on November 29, 2017, that a government-to-government agreement between the Philippines and Japan would be signed by the end of that year, paving the way for Sumitomo Corporation to return as the maintenance provider. The ₱22 billion project, partly funded by a ₱18 billion loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, was approved by the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) board of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) on August 17, 2018. It intended to rehabilitate and upgrade the existing systems and trains, for the line to return to its original high-grade design.
On November 8, 2018, the Philippine and Japanese governments signed the loan agreement for the line's rehabilitation after both governments exchanged notes the previous day. The rehabilitation and maintenance contract was signed by the DOTr and Sumitomo on December 28. The project was initially slated to start by January 2019, but the delayed implementation of the national budget for 2019 caused delays, as around four billion pesos would be sourced from the government.
On May 1, 2019, Sumitomo Corporation, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering (MHIENG), and TES Philippines assumed the role as maintenance provider for the MRT Line 3, beginning a rigorous rehabilitation process. Under the 43-month contract, rehabilitation works were to be done within 26 months. It covers the overhaul of all MRTC Class 3000 vehicles, repairs on the escalators and elevators, rail replacement, upgrades on the signaling and communication systems, power supply, overhead systems, maintenance and station equipment. After the rehabilitation, a 17-month maintenance contract would be undertaken by the Japanese firms. The contract was originally slated to end by December 31, 2022, but was moved to May 31, 2023.
The rehabilitation was originally scheduled to be completed by July 2021. However, delays brought by the COVID-19 pandemic caused revised timelines. The project was completed in December 2021, as announced by Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade on February 28, 2022. On March 22, President Rodrigo Duterte and Secretary Tugade inaugurated the newly rehabilitated line at a completion ceremony held at Shaw Boulevard station. As part of its completion, free rides were offered initially for a month to combat inflation, but was extended for an additional two months.
On May 26, 2023, a ₱6.9 billion loan was signed by the governments of Japan and the Philippines for the second phase of the project, covering the line's continued maintenance and its connection to the North Triangle Common Station with the lines that would interchange at that station. Four days later, DOTr and Sumitomo signed a contract to extend the latter's maintenance in the railway line until July 31, 2025. Under the extended contract, the existing three-car trains would be expanded to four cars to cater the increase in passenger demand. Additionally, the pocket track near Taft Avenue station would be extended to accommodate longer four-car trains, and construction works for the pocket track expansion began in November 2024. The program aims to increase the line's ridership capacity to 500,000 passengers a day.
The lines run along the alignment of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue from North Avenue in Quezon City to the intersection of EDSA and Taft Avenue in Pasay, forming in a semi-orbital line. The rails are mostly elevated and erected either over or along the roads covered, with cut and underground sections between Buendia and Ayala stations, the only underground stations on the line. The rail line serves the cities of Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, San Juan and Quezon City. The line crosses Osmeña Highway and South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) at Magallanes Interchange in Makati.
The line has 13 stations along its 16.9-kilometer (10.5 mi) route, spaced on average around 1.3 kilometers (0.81 mi) apart. The southern terminus of the line is Taft Avenue at Pasay Rotonda, the intersection between Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) and Taft Avenue, while the northern terminus is the North Avenue along EDSA in Barangay Bagong Pag-asa, Quezon City. Three stations serve as connecting stations with the lines of the Manila Light Rail Transit System (LRT) and Philippine National Railways (PNR). The Magallanes station is near PNR's EDSA station, while Araneta Center–Cubao is indirectly connected to the LRT Line 2 station of the same, and Taft Avenue is connected via a covered walkway to the LRT Line 1 EDSA station. No stations are connected to other rapid transit lines within the paid areas.
The line is open daily from 4:30 a.m. PHT (UTC+8) and closes at 11:30 p.m. during weekdays, and 10:30 p.m. on weekends. It operates almost every day of the year unless otherwise announced. Special schedules are announced via the public address system in every station and also in newspapers and other mass media. During Holy Week, a public holiday in the Philippines, the line is closed for annual maintenance, owing to fewer commuters and traffic around the metro. Normal operation resumes on the first working day after Easter Sunday. During the Christmas season, operating hours are usually extended on the days leading up to Christmas Day, but are shortened on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve to allow its staff to celebrate the holidays with their families.
It has experimented with extended opening hours, the first of which included 24-hour operations beginning on June 1, 2009 (primarily aimed at serving call center agents and other workers in the business process outsourcing sector). Citing low ridership figures and financial losses, this was suspended after two days, and operations were instead extended from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 am. Operations subsequently returned to the former schedule by April 2010, but services were again extended starting March 10, 2014, with trains running on a trial basis from 4:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. in anticipation of major traffic buildup in light of several major road projects beginning in 2014.
Responding to a commuter's concern on X (formerly Twitter) about the limited operating hours at night, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) explained in August 2023 the need for timely maintenance works, since any delays would affect other portions of the line for the next trips. The DOTr added that unlike the extensive railway systems of Europe and Japan, where 24-hour operations are possible, the MRT system only consists of one line. The department also claimed that if maintenance is not ensured, the line would "slowly deteriorate".
On March 17, 2025, in the aftermath of the line's inspection by Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon, he asked the line's management to extend its operations. Before the current operating hours were implemented, train services ended an hour earlier. The extended operating hours, which took effect on March 24, is aimed at reducing long lines during the evening peak hours. The DOTr also plans to deploy more trains along the line to serve more passengers.
The stations have a standard layout, with a platform level and a concourse level. The concourse is usually above the platform, with stairs, escalators and elevators leading down to the platform level. However, fare gates are located at the platform level in most stations, meaning that commuters will need to exit the paid area to catch a train going in the opposite direction. Switching trains without paying a new fare is only possible at the Araneta Center–Cubao, Boni, Buendia, Ayala, and Taft Avenue stations due to their different layout.
The station platforms have a standard length of 130 meters (426 ft 6 in), designed to accommodate trains with four cars. The stations are also designed to occupy the entire span of EDSA, allowing passengers to safely cross between one end of the road and the other.
Most stations are also barrier-free inside and outside the station, and trains have spaces for passengers using wheelchairs. With the exception of Buendia and Ayala stations, and the platform level of Taft Avenue and Boni stations, all stations are situated above ground, taking advantage of EDSA's topology.
Stations either have side platforms, which is the case for most stations, or island platforms, such as Taft Avenue. Due to the very high patronage of the line, before the pandemic, part of the platform corresponding to the first car of the train is cordoned off for the use of senior citizens, pregnant women, children who are below 4 feet (1.2 m) and age seven, and disabled passengers. Since 2021, the first two doors of the first car of the train have been allotted as a priority section for the aforementioned passengers.
The line has a total of 46 escalators and 34 elevators across all 13 stations. Prior to the rehabilitation, only few escalators and elevators were operational. The escalators and elevators were rehabilitated as part of the rehabilitation of the line. The project started in June 2019 and was completed on August 20, 2020.
In February 2012, the line allowed folding bicycles to be brought into trains provided that the wheels do not exceed more than 20 inches (51 cm) in diameter.
Platform screen doors were also planned for each station, with the plans for the platform doors were laid out as early as 2013, however, these plans were delayed until it was reconsidered in 2017.
Some stations are connected at concourse level to nearby buildings, such as shopping malls, for easier accessibility. Inside the concourse of all stations are stalls or shops where people can buy food or drinks. Stalls vary by station, and some have fast food stalls. Stations such as North Triangle (Ayala Malls Vertis North, SM North EDSA, and Trinoma), Quezon Avenue (Centris Station Mall), Araneta Center—Cubao (Ali Mall, Farmers Plaza, Gateway Mall), Isetann Cubao, and SM Araneta City), Ortigas (Robinsons Galleria Ortigas, SM Megamall and The Podium), Shaw Boulevard (Greenfield District Pavilion, Shangri-La Plaza, and Starmall Shaw), Guadalupe (Guadalupe Commercial Complex), Ayala (Glorietta, Greenbelt, Landmark Makati, One Ayala, and SM Makati), Magallanes (Southgate Mall), and Taft Avenue (Metro Point Mall) are connected to or are near shopping malls and/or other large shopping areas, where commuters are offered more shopping varieties.
It is also accessible to major transport terminals in Metro Manila such as Araneta City Bus Port and other provincial bus terminals within EDSA—Cubao area via Araneta Center—Cubao, Parklea via Shaw Boulevard, Guadalupe Jeep Terminal via Guadalupe, One Ayala via Ayala, Pasay Rotonda via Taft Avenue, and the upcoming North Triangle Common Station.
Since November 19, 2001, in cooperation with the Philippine Daily Inquirer, passengers have been offered copies of the Inquirer Libre, a free, tabloid-size, Tagalog version of the Inquirer, which is available at all stations. In 2014, Pilipino Mirror also started distributing free tabloid newspapers.
The line's safety was affirmed in a 2004 World Bank paper prepared by Halcrow, describing the overall state of metro rail transit operations in Manila as being "good". However, since the DOTr took over maintenance of the train system in 2012, the safety and reliability of the system has been questioned, with experts calling it "an accident waiting to happen." While several incidents and accidents were reported between 2012 and 2014, they did not deter commuters from using the system. The Philippine government, meanwhile, continues to assert that the system is safe overall despite those incidents and accidents.
As the line operated significantly above its designed capacity of 350,000 passengers per day from 2004 to 2019, government officials have admitted that capacity and system upgrades are overdue, although the DOTr has never acted on the numerous capacity expansion proposals of the private owners. In the absence of major investment in improving system safety and reliability, DOTr has resorted to experimenting with and implementing other solutions to reduce strain on the system, including crowd management on station platforms and the proposed implementation of peak-hour express train service. However, some of these solutions, such as platform crowd management, are unpopular with passengers.
For safety and security reasons, persons who are visibly intoxicated, insane and/or under the influence of controlled substances, persons carrying flammable materials and/or explosives, and persons carrying bulky objects or items over 1.5 meters (4.9 ft) tall and/or wide are prohibited from entering the line. Products in tin cans are also prohibited on board, citing the possibility of home-made bombs being concealed inside the cans.
In late 2000 and early 2001, in response to the Rizal Day bombings and the September 11 attacks, security was increased. Following a vandalism incident in May 2021, the number of security personnel deployed across all stations was increased and a patrol car was deployed for added security. After a bomb threat incident on September 8, 2023, DOTr formed an inter-agency task force to enhance security across all transportation sectors. Units of the Philippine National Police and security police provided by private companies can be found in all stations. All stations have a head guard. Some stations may also have a deployed K9 bomb-sniffing dog. The line also employs the use of closed-circuit television inside all stations to monitor suspicious activities.
Pets have been allowed to ride since July 12, 2021, but these must be placed inside a carrier bag before boarding a train.
The original designed ridership of the line is 350,000, yet as the years passed, the number doubled from 450,000 daily passengers in 2006–2007 to 490,000 passengers in 2008 and up to 500,000 passengers from 2010 to 2012, with record numbers reaching as high as 620,000 from 2012 to 2013, before declining to 560,000 in 2014. The high ridership of the line is due to the time consumed when commuting via EDSA, as well as the speed of the trains reaching up to 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph), and connectivity to Metro Manila's major transport hubs, railway lines, and central business districts, which results to a reduced commuting travel time and an increase in ridership. The daily ridership of the line can reach as much as 300,000 to 500,000 passengers from 2012 to 2016, despite poor maintenance and long lines, causing the government to launch bus services, known as MRT Buses, around its stations, to serve as alternatives for 900,000 to 1 million passengers. In addition to the rising daily ridership that continues to exceed the line's designed capacity, and as the government continues to implement the metro line's capacity expansion project, it aims to reach a ridership of 800,000 daily passengers as all of the new trains from China will be added to its current fleet.
Ridership declined in 2015, with a daily average of 327,314 passengers, which is lower than the 2014 record of 464,871 daily passengers on average. It slightly increased in 2016, to 370,036, and the highest recorded daily ridership was recorded at 517,929 in December of that year. However, ridership started to decline by 2017 due to poor maintenance and daily incidents, which continued through 2018 and 2019. A significant drop in ridership was recorded in 2020 due to capacity limitations brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, serving 70,000 to 150,000 passengers daily. It previously served almost 40,000 passengers in June 2020, and 150,000 passengers in January 2021. Until February 2022, the line operated at a limited capacity before capacity limitations were removed by March 1, 2022.
Ridership slightly increased in 2021, servicing 136,935 daily passengers on average due to the loosening of capacity restrictions. After the completion of the line's rehabilitation in 2022, the line offered free rides to 28.6 million commuters within a three-month period, averaging 318,055 riders daily. By the end of the year, the line carried 98,330,683 passengers with an average of 273,141 commuters daily. For the fourth straight year, the line's ridership continues to rise to its pre-pandemic levels in 2024, as the railway line served a daily average of 375,474 passengers.
Data from the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
The line, like all other lines in Metro Manila, uses a distance-based fare structure, with fares ranging from 13 to 28 pesos (24 to 51 U.S. cents), depending on the destination. Commuters who ride the line are charged ₱13 ($0.26) for the first two stations, ₱16 ($0.32) for 3–4 stations, ₱20 ($0.41) for 5–7 stations, ₱24 ($0.49) for 8–10 stations and ₱28 ($0.57) for 11 stations or the entire line. Children below 1.02 meters (3 ft 4 in) (the height of a fare gate) may ride for free.
Fares are free of charge every March 8 (International Women's Day; free rides exclusive for women), June 12 (Independence Day), and December 30 (Rizal Day) on limited time slots.
The line, along with the LRT Line 2 and Philippine National Railways lines also offered free rides to students starting July 1, 2019, but students must register to avail a student pass. However, the free rides for students stopped in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic as distance learning was implemented as a mode of learning during the pandemic. With the shift towards the return of physical face-to-face classes, a plan to return the free rides to students by August 2022 was announced; however, free rides for students were only limited to the LRT Line 2 due to more losses that the government will incur as a consequence of the free rides (Line 2 itself later stopped the free rides after three months due to similar reasons). Instead, the line will offer a 20% fare discount for students that wish to avail.
Two types of tickets exist: a single-journey (one-way) ticket whose cost is dependent on the destination, and a stored-value (multiple-use) ticket for 100 pesos. The 200-peso & 500-peso stored-value tickets were issued in the past, but have since been phased out. The single-journey ticket is valid only on the date of purchase. Meanwhile, the stored-value ticket is valid for three months from date of first use.
The tickets come in several incarnations: these include tickets bearing the portraits of former presidents Joseph Estrada and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, which have since been phased out, and one bearing the logos of the DOTC and the MRTC. Ticket shortages are common: in 2005, the MRTC was forced to recycle tickets bearing Estrada's portrait to address critical ticket shortages, even resorting to borrowing stored-value tickets from the LRTA and even cutting unusable tickets in half for use as manual passes. Shortages were also reported in 2012, and the DOTC was working on procuring additional tickets in 2014. Because of the ticket shortages, it had become common practice for regular passengers to purchase several stored-value tickets at a time, though ticket shortages still persist.
Although it has partnered with private telecommunications companies in experimenting with RFID technology as an alternative ticketing system in the past, these were phased out in 2009.
Currently, inter-operable beep cards with similar-to-the-previous single-journey and stored-value ticket types are now issued, along with the deployment of brand-new ticketing machines that replaced the barely-used ticketing machines that has been in place since the line's inauguration. The beep, tap-and-go tickets, loadable up to ₱10,000, became available to use in all stations of the line on October 3, 2015.
A shortage of the stored value cards was reported in 2022 due to the global chip shortage caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Adjusting passenger fares was ordered by President Joseph Estrada as a means to boost flagging ridership figures, and the issue of fares both historically and in the present day continues to be a contentious political issue involving officials at even the highest levels of government.
Current fare levels were set on January 4, 2015, as a consequence of DOTr (formerly DOTC) having to increase fares for LRT Line 1 as per their concession agreement with MPIC-Ayala, with fare hikes delayed for several years despite inflation and rising operating costs. Prior to the current fares levels, fares were set on July 15, 2000, under the orders of then President Estrada; this was intended to have the line become competitive against other modes of transport, but had the effect of causing revenue shortfalls which the government shouldered. While originally set to last only until January 2001, the new fare structure persisted due to strong public opposition against increasing fares, especially as ridership increased significantly after lower fares were implemented. In 2022, when the line waived its fares, ridership also increased. These lower fares—which are only slightly more expensive than jeepney fares—ended up being financed through large government subsidies amounting to around ₱45 per passenger, and which for both the MRT and LRT reached ₱75 billion for the 10-year period between 2004 and 2014. Without subsidies, the cost of a single trip is estimated at ₱60, and a ₱10 increase in fares would yield additional monthly revenues of ₱2–3 billion a month.
Passenger fare subsidies are unpopular outside Metro Manila, with subsidy opponents claiming that their taxes are being used to subsidize Metro Manila commuters without any benefit to the countryside, and that the fare subsidies should be used for infrastructure improvements in the rest of the country. In his 2013 State of the Nation Address, President Benigno Aquino III claimed that it would be unfair for non-Metro Manila residents to use their taxes to subsidize the LRT and MRT. However, supporters of the subsidies claimed that the rest of the country benefits economically from efficient transportation in Metro Manila.
In January 2023, a petition was filed for a ₱4–6 fare hike due to a major net loss incurred; in 2022, the incurred revenue was only ₱1.11 billion against expenditures of roughly ₱8.97 billion, resulting in a loss of ₱7.86 billion. In the petition, the MRT-3 management said that fare revenues were never enough to compensate the MRTC to cover the initial investment in the construction, operations, and maintenance of the line. The fare hike is now set for the first quarter of 2024.
The line runs light rail vehicles (LRV) in a regular three-car configuration. Four-car trains began operating by March 2022, although most trains remain running in three cars. The DOTr planned to convert all three-car trains to four-car trains by 2023. Two train types run in the line, the latest being those purchased from CRRC Dalian, under the Aquino administration.
The line has a total of 121 light rail vehicles. 73 of which were made in the Czech Republic by ČKD (now part of Siemens AG) and were purchased with export financing from the Czech government. One ČKD train car was damaged following a derailment of a train in 2014. Another 48 were made by CRRC Dalian in China that were purchased at a cost of ₱3.8 billion. These have a total three-car capacity of 1,182 passengers, expandable to 1,576 with an additional car, which is a little bigger than the normal capacity of LRT Line 1 first generation rolling stock that has a capacity with the same configuration of 1,122 passengers, although trains came with air conditioning. Despite this, it is designed to carry in excess of 23,000 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD), and is expandable to accommodate 48,000 passengers per hour per direction.
The plans for new rolling stock has been an issue for the MRT during the Aquino administration under DOTC's leadership of then Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, with plans to acquire 52-second-hand LRVs offered from Madrid Metro in Spain with a budget of ₱8.43 billion, along with a proposal from Inekon Trams in 2013. However, undisclosed issues and train incompatibility issues regarding the project, the project was downgraded to 48 LRVs, with the contract having CRRC Dalian supply 48 new LRVs. The deployment of the Dalian trains was delayed due to several factors, including weight limits on existing tracks and inconsistencies in production, which has since been corrected. On October 27, 2018, DOTr started the gradual deployment of the 2nd-generation trains. Currently, none of the Dalian trains are in operation as a consequence of restrictions imposed by the line's current maintenance provider, Sumitomo Corporation.
The trains are designed to run at a maximum speed of 65 kilometers per hour (40 mph), but currently run at an operating speed of 60 kilometers per hour (37 mph), though some areas are limited to 40 km/h (25 mph) like turnouts.
The Passenger Assist Railway Display System (PARDS), a passenger information system powered by LCD screens installed near the ceiling of the train that shows news, advertisements, current train location, arrivals and station layouts, are already installed inside the first-generation trains. PARDS is also installed on trains on LRT lines 1 and 2.
The line maintains an underground depot in Quezon City near North Avenue station. Above the depot is TriNoma, a shopping mall owned by the Ayala Corporation. The depot occupies 84,444 square meters (908,950 sq ft; 8.4444 ha) of space and serves as the center of operations and maintenance. It is connected to the mainline through a spur line. The depot is capable of storing 81 light rail vehicles, with the option to expand to include 40 more vehicles as demand arises. They are parked on nine sets of tracks, which converge onto the spur route and later on to the main network. However, a lot of rail tracks for storage inside the depot owned by MRTC were taken by DOTC (now DOTr) to repair broken rails, as DOTC's previous maintenance provider did not purchase spare rails. These rails have since been replaced during the rehabilitation done along the entire line by Sumitomo.
The line uses the CITYFLO 250 fixed block signaling solution supplied by Alstom (formerly Bombardier Transportation), designed for light rapid transit operations with on-board automatic train protection (ATP) system on trains. Other components include train detection using track circuits, EBI Screen 900 centralized traffic control, and computer-based interlocking.
Adtranz, later Bombardier Transportation, designed and supplied the original signaling system and maintained it from 2000 to 2012. The firm owns the proprietary rights to supply new components for the system. In October 2015, Bombardier was awarded the contract to upgrade the system's local control system. The seven-month upgrade replaced the MAN 900 local control system with the newer EBI Screen 900 system with modern computers and fiber optic technology.
The previous maintenance providers failed to properly maintain the signaling system and used non-original spare parts to save costs. This in turn, caused many problems within the system which became among the top three causes of frequent service interruptions. On February 9, 2018, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with original equipment manufacturer Bombardier Transportation to upgrade the system and procure the spare parts. Included in the MoU was a two-year maintenance contract that was later cancelled in May 2019 due to the rehabilitation program which included the maintenance of the signaling system by Sumitomo.
The 2019–2021 upgrade covered the replacement of copper cables with fiber optic cables, installation of 71 new signal lights, new interlocking equipment, new point machines, new track circuits (including tuning units which form part of the circuits), and other wayside equipment. Works continued during the acquisition of Bombardier Transportation by Alstom in January 2021. The upgraded system was commissioned on October 24, 2021.
The standard gauge tracks consist of 54-kilogram-per-meter (36 lb/ft) rails designed to the UIC 54 rail profile, which are welded together to form a continuous welded rail. Some rails located at turnouts have fishplates bolted at the ends of the rail. These are laid on sections of the line with ballasted and concrete plinth sections. Sections with track ballast are located on at-grade sections and the underground portion of the line (except Buendia and the turnouts south of the station), while plinth sections are located at elevated sections of the line. The tracks on ballasted sections are supported by concrete sleepers. The rehabilitation of the line led to the introduction of fiber-reinforced foam urethane (FFU) railway sleepers. FFU sleepers are found at the depot and the turnouts near Taft Avenue station.
Plans to replace the rail tracks were laid in 2015. Replacement works in certain sections of the line were conducted in February and March of that year. In January 2015, the joint venture of Jorgman, Daewoo, and MBTech Group was awarded the ₱61.5 million contract for the major replacement works. The joint venture supplied 7,296 pieces of 12-meter (39 ft) rails.
By 2014, speed restrictions were imposed due to safety concerns, which downgraded the operating speed from 60 km/h (37 mph) later downgraded to 40 km/h (25 mph), subsequently downgraded to 30 km/h (19 mph). A comprehensive rail replacement program started on November 4, 2019, in which 4,053 pieces of 18-meter (59 ft) rails assembled by Nippon Steel Corporation in Fukuoka were used. Rail replacement works were initially suspended during the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, but works resumed in April 2020 and the replacement was fast-tracked. The replacement program was slated to be completed by February 2021, but was completed five months early, in September 2020. The turnouts near Taft Avenue station were repaired in October and November 2020. The rail replacement was intended to increase the operating speed back to 60 km/h (37 mph) and was achieved on December 7, 2020.
In November 2022, the Department of Transportation said that it is considering to privatize the operations and maintenance of the line to enhance efficiency, reduce operating costs, and keep fares affordable. The rail lines assets will remain owned by the government, similar to the LRT Line 1. Such a plan was announced as early as 2017.
Although Phase 1 of the line (Taft Avenue to North Avenue) has already been built, the original route envisioned by the government was for it to traverse most of EDSA (from Monumento to Taft Avenue), eventually meeting with the LRT Line 1 at Monumento in Caloocan (Phase 2) to create a seamless rail loop around Metro Manila. The total length of the planned extension was 5 kilometers (3.1 mi).
A study about the integration of Metro Manila's railway network, published by JICA in 2001, proposes the through-operation of both LRT-1 and the MRT-3, which would have interoperability to create a seamless loop around the region. The trains would start from Monumento before turning back to the mainline of LRT 1 at Pasay Rotonda.
The expansion was shelved by then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in favor of the LRT Line 1's extension from Monumento to a new common station that it will share with at North Avenue, thus closing the loop. The National Economic and Development Authority, as well as President Arroyo have said that the link at North Avenue is a national priority, since it would not only provide seamless service between the LRT Line 1 and MRT Line 3 but would also help decongest Metro Manila. It is estimated that by 2010, when the extension is completed, some 684,000 commuters would use the line every day from the present 400,000, and traffic congestion on EDSA would be cut by as much as 50%.
Proposals to fully unite LRT-1 and MRT-3 operations and systems have been pitched but has not been pursued so far. Feasibility tests for this proposition included LRT-1 trains visiting MRT 3 depot facilities and running them on the entire line. Even if the structure gauge connecting the two rail lines has been successfully tested, commuters have to go down at Fernando Poe Jr. station of LRT Line 1 and walk over or take a tricycle or jeepney for the 1-kilometer (0.62 mi) distance to the North Avenue station of MRT Line 3. In 2011, the Department of Transportation and Communications (precursor to the DOTr), under Transportation Secretary Jose de Jesus, launched an auction for a temporary five-year operations and maintenance contract for the two lines; the bidding was set for July. Over twenty-four companies expressed interest to bid which included Ayala Corporation, Bombardier Transportation, CAF, Metro Pacific, Sumitomo Corporation, Siemens, DMCI Holdings, San Miguel Corporation, and others. De Jesus later resigned from the DOTC in June for personal reasons, and his successor, Mar Roxas, halted the auction process and was later shelved.
The proposal to integrate the LRT Line 1 and MRT Line 3 was revived in June 2024 by Metro Pacific Investments. The company, which holds a majority stake in LRT Line 1 operator Light Rail Manila Corporation, submitted an unsolicited proposal to integrate the operations of the two lines. It is now under review by DOTr and has been endorsed to the former by the PPP Center, after initially rejecting it due to being incomplete in substance. The proposed line merger will run both LRT-1 and MRT-3 trains on the same track, while resolving outstanding issues such as the Dalian trains, supply chain and potential line expansion.
In the 1999 Metro Manila Urban Transportation Integration Study, the line was proposed to extend all the way to Navotas, which is only 10 kilometers (6.2 mi), and another one to the reclamation area (known as Bay City) in about 2 kilometers (1.2 mi). The line was also intended to extend all the way to Kawit.
In a feasibility study in 2009 and in 2015, launched by Japan International Cooperation Agency, along with the Department of Transportation, the Transport and Traffic Planners (TTPI) Inc. and other Japanese and local railway officials, launched a plan to extend the present MRT line's southern end, by constructing a 2.2-kilometer (1.4 mi) at-grade and underground segment, from Taft Avenue station to the SM Mall of Asia complex. Plans were also laid out to add another station, by traversing through Macapagal Boulevard and linking the line to the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange, therefore adding another 3.1 kilometers (1.9 mi) to the main line. The study also included a planned 7.2-kilometer (4.5 mi) extension to the northern and western cities of Navotas, Southern Caloocan, and Malabon, which is also included to the planned merging project with the LRT Line 1, and connecting it to the North–South Commuter Railway.
Due to the numerous problems surrounding the project, such as right-of-way and cost issues, the government decided to presumably scrap the extension plans, and look for alternatives instead, such as the planned Integrated Pasay Monorail project by the Pasay City LGU and SM Investments, starting from the Taft Avenue station to SM Mall of Asia.
In the initial stages of the construction of the transit line, a proposal was formulated for a supplementary rail extension that would traverse from Buendia station to the Gil Puyat station of the LRT-1, situated between Ayala and Buendia stations. The sole existing trace of this discontinued proposal is an underground tunnel extending from Buendia to Ayala stations, taking a rightward trajectory towards Ayala Avenue, before running towards Gil Puyat Avenue. Despite sporadic references, there is presently no intention to reassess or reinstate this abandoned initiative.
In 2000, during the completion of the line, MRTC proposed an idea to build the extension of the line to Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), running from Taft Avenue station, then passing along Roxas Boulevard, and ending at this airport. The project was expected to cost ₱500 million.
A new study for the Metro Manila Rail Network has been unveiled by DOTC Undersecretary for Public Information Dante Velasco that LRT 1, LRT 2, and MRT 3 will be placed under the management of the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA). This is due to maintenance cost issues for LRT 1's maintenance cost, which is approximately ₱35 million, along with LRT Line 2's ₱25 million and MRT Line 3's ₱54 million maintenance costs. Another reason for this study is for the unification of the lines. According to DOTC Undersecretary for Rails Glicerio Sicat, the transfer was set by the government in June 2011. However, it is unlikely that the private owners, MRTC, will approve this plan.
On January 13, 2011, LRTA Administrator Rafael S. Rodriguez took over as officer-in-charge of the line in preparation for the integration of operations of the three lines, but with the entry of a new leadership into the DOTC that year and in 2012, the transfer was deemed not likely to happen; however, in April 2012, a LRT 1 trainset made the first trial journey to the MRT 3 depot.
On May 26, 2014, the line's general manager Al Vitangcol was replaced by LRTA Administrator Honorito Chaneco as officer-in-charge. The move came after Vitangcol was accused by the ambassador of the Czech Republic of extortion and for awarding the maintenance contract in October 2012 to PH Trams, a company established by Vitangcol's uncle-in-law. Vitangcol was also involved in an attempt to extort $30 million from Inekon Group in exchange of 48 train vehicles in July 2012.
As the build-lease-transfer contract of the DOTr and MRTC nears its 2025 expiration, the department plans to transfer its management of the line to the LRTA. Such a plan was pitched in July 2023 by Transportation Undersecretary for Railways Cesar Chavez, when the department considered privatizing the operations and maintenance and bundling it with that of the LRT Line 2.
On November 21, 2013, the NEDA board, chaired by President Benigno Aquino III, approved the construction of a common station within North Avenue between SM City North EDSA and TriNoma shopping malls. It is estimated to cost ₱1.4 billion. It will feature head-to-head platforms for LRT 1 and MRT 3 trains with a 147.4-meter (484 ft) elevated walkalator to MRT 7. SM Investments Corporation posted 200 million pesos for the naming rights of the common station. This is inconsistent with the original plan of having seamless connectivity to Monumento and is also an unusual arrangement of having two train stations beside each other. However, the project was shelved indefinitely due to disputes over cost, engineering issues and naming rights. The Supreme Court halted the construction of the project in August 2014 after SM Prime Holdings contested the new location near Trinoma. An agreement was later reached under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte on September 28, 2016, and the common station finally begun construction on September 29, 2017. The station will open in 2025.
During the testing period of the system, the MRT–3 has been prone to numerous disruptions and breakdowns due to technical problems in the overall systems and design since its opening in 1999, due to many factors, such as the humid conditions in the country, lack of accessibility to the stations, and incompatible problems in the rolling stock, causing major adjustments to the system.
However, problems began to arise in 2012, due to poor maintenance causing train glitches, lack of spare parts, and negligence. The system has faced numerous interruptions and accidents. This in turn has caused lower ridership, frequent unloading of passengers and passenger inconvenience.
Among the notable incidents involving the railway line are: