The Department of Transportation (DOTr) to conduct a demo run of the Metro Manila Subway by the first quarter of 2028 to complete the country’s first underground railway system.

DOTr Acting Secretary Giovanni Lopez said the demo run will cover the subway’s initial segment in northern Metro Manila from East Valenzuela to Quirino Avenue.

Lopez said our target for the demo run, I repeat, for the demo run, is first quarter of 2028. Why do we need a demo run? This will be from the East Valenzuela subway depot all the way to Quirino station in Quezon City. It is different from the testing and commissioning. Our coaches will run along the rail tracks. So this will be the first phase, which is expected by the first quarter of 2028.

The Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP) broke ground in 2019. Upon completion, the MMSP will have a total of 17 stations and a 30.34-hectare depot where the Philippine Railway Institute is located.

The project involves the construction of a 33-kilometer railway line that will connect Valenzuela City to Pasay City, with a spur line to Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3.

The MMSP’s 17 stations are: Valenzuela, Quirino Highway, Tandang Sora, North Avenue, Quezon Avenue, East Avenue, Anonas, Katipunan (Camp Aguinaldo), Ortigas Avenue, Shaw Boulevard, Kalayaan Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Lawton East, Senate-DepEd, NAIA Terminal 3, FTI, and Bicutan.

The DOTr chief said as of November 2025, the entire Metro Manila Subway, more or less, is at about 26%. The work in constructing a subway is complicated. As you can see, there’s a tunnel boring machine. Work is done

Earlier this month, the DOTr reported that it has acquired a total of 90.76% right-of-way properties for the subway construction.

Upon completion, Lopez said, the MMSP is seen to benefit some 300,000 to 400,000 daily passengers.

The MMSP is envisioned to be interconnected with other rail systems: the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT1), the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3), and the Metro Rail Transit-Line 7 (MRT-7) through the Common Station; the Light Rail Transit-Line 2 (LRT2) at the Anonas Station; and a physical run through into the North-South Commuter Railway Extension (NSCR-Ex) at the FTI and Bicutan Stations.