Arriving soon: Cargo rail between Laguna and Albay

MANILA, Philippines — Farmers, manufacturers and traders may get a cheaper mode of transportation for their goods by next year, as the Philippine National Railways (PNR) will pursue a P5-billion plan to retrofit the existing line between Laguna and Albay for cargo movement.

The PNR is looking into the viability of repurposing its current alignment to the south of Luzon for freight use, for the meantime that the government has yet to secure a financier for the revival of the Bicol Express, also called the PNR South Long Haul.

Transportation Undersecretary Jeremy Regino told The STAR that the PNR is transferring trains to its existing lines in Southern Tagalog and Bicol Region.

To recall, the PNR has stopped its commuter services in Metro Manila to make way for the civil works of the P873.62 billion North-South Commuter Railway. To maximize rail assets, the PNR is bringing locomotives to the southern segment.

One of the PNR’s plans is to operate cargo trains between Calamba, Laguna and Legazpi in Albay by 2025. In particular, the government looks to build a dry port in Calamba where containers can be carried in and out of the freight trains.

The PNR may require a maximum of P5 billion to develop the project based on initial estimates and Regino prays that legislators will give it a chance by allocating a budget for it.

A study conducted by blueFocus Infrastructure Advisors showed that traders pay at least $5,300 to deliver an imported container from one place to another in the Philippines.

The study also found that trucking services and warehouse fees account for as high as 25 percent of the logistics costs.

Regino said traders could save around 30 percent in freight costs by using an exclusive alignment, no delay transport like cargo rail. In the process, this could mean higher income for farmers and lower prices for consumers, as goods are transported quicker by rail than on roads.

Initially, Regino said the PNR may do one freight trip per day in the evening to avoid disrupting the passenger operations in the morning and afternoon in Southern Tagalog and Bicol Region. A single freight trip can carry as many as the equivalent of 12 container vans.

“The transport of food and beverages will be a lot lower and be more efficient through the freight train. Even for the old line, PNR has conducted market sounding for a freight line. They [private firms] are excited,” Regino said.

Regino underscored the need to mount cargo services to the south of Luzon, flagging the lack of road networks in Southern Tagalog and Bicol Region as a logistics problem.

“We have not yet developed the road network of the Philippines, so we are hitting two birds with one stone if we use the commuter tracks as freight tracks. A train can contain four, eight, even 12 container vans in one haul. We are talking about big savings here,” Regino said.

Right now, the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) reaches Sto. Tomas, Batangas only.

San Miguel Corp., the concessionaire for SLEX, will invest an estimated P22.6 billion to extend the toll road to Quezon, with intent to go as far as Matnog, Sorsogon.

Infrawatch PH convenor Terry Ridon supports the PNR’s initiative to bring down logistics costs and slash consumer prices by deploying trains for cargo delivery. He also asked the government to commit to a long-term plan on the use of locomotives for trade and transport.

“The significant percentage share of logistics costs has always been a major concern in the prices of basic commodities, and cargo rail between ports and production facilities within Mega Manila should spur economic growth in the (region) and allow for lower prices of goods,” Ridon told The STAR.

The opening of freight rail is also seen to improve the economic condition of the Bicol Region, where poverty incidence remains high at 25.1 percent as opposed to the national rate of 16.4 percent in 2023.

Meanwhile, Southern Tagalog acts as a manufacturing powerhouse that hosts some of the biggest industrial parks in Cavite and Laguna, making it necessary for the region to have multiple modes of goods transport.