LRMC aims to open more vaccination sites at stations
LIGHT RAIL Manila Corp. (LRMC), the private operator of Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1), announced on Monday that it opened another vaccination site, as part of its efforts to protect more passengers from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
LRMC said in a statement that it recently partnered with the Pasay City Health Office for a jab site at the LRT-1 Baclaran Station where “almost 400 individuals” have been inoculated, while another was opened at the Central Station on Monday.
The Central Station vaccination site is open from Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Baclaran vaccination site will reopen on Feb. 23, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The company said it is hoping to partner with other local government units for setting up additional LRT-1 vaccination sites.
“We share the same goal of protecting our people better and making COVID-19 vaccines more accessible, so we can finally put an end to this COVID-19 pandemic,” said Louernie F. De Sales, LRMC head of Health, Safety, Environment, and Quality Department.
LRMC recently reported a 20% year-on-year decline in January-to-September revenue last year to P799 million due to capacity reductions and lower demand. LRT-1’s average daily ridership decreased 48% year on year to 116,021 due to the capacity limit.
LRMC is the consortium composed of Ayala Corp.; Metro Pacific Light Rail Corp., a unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC); and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Pte. Ltd.
MPIC is one of three Philippine subsidiaries of Hong Kong’s First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being PLDT, Inc. and Philex Mining Corp. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., maintains an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group. — Arjay L. Balinbin
