Mayor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin Jr. FB photograb/CTTO
CLARK FREEPORT – A new road that will be constructed beneath the elevated Philippine National Railway (PNR) Clark Phase 2 or the Malolos-to-Clark Railway has been proposed by Mayor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr. of Angeles City.
Lazatin said this is a smart way of preventing anybody from building any structures under the railway and at the same time add to the road network in Pampanga, thus further easing traffic.
During a meeting with Pinoy Gumising Ka Movement chairman Ruperto Cruz at the Royal Garden Golf Clubhouse last Monday, Lazatin also said he has consulted with Gov. Dennis Pineda recently who agreed to the idea.
The usual problem with these big projects is the problem of right-of-way, said former Clark Development Corp. president and now LIPAD EVP for Commercial Noel Manankil who was also present at the meeting.
But the mayor said there will be no right-of-way problem since it will be constructed beneath the PNR track, the government therefore owning the right of way.
Lazatin said, in this regard, he has formally written a letter to the PNR regarding his proposal.
The design renders of the PNR Clark Phase 2 of the massive North-South Commuter Railway show that it has six stations— Calumpit, Apalit, City of San Fernando, Angeles City, Clark, and Clark International Airport.
Once operational, the PNR Clark 2 will reduce travel time from Malolos, Bulacan to Clark, Pampanga, and vice versa, from 2 hours to just 30-35 minutes.
It also features the country’s first-ever Airport Railway Express Service, which will connect Makati to the Clark International Airport in just 55 minutes, from the current 2-3 hours.
