First Filipino-built Train Brings Pride and Relief
The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) spent five years working on the Hybrid Electric Train (HET), and it was five years well worth it. Finally, the locomotives can be deployed on the Philippine National Railway (PNR) tracks.
Pablo Acuin, senior science research specialist at the DOST who headed the HET project, said the trains they have built are safe, reliable, and comparable to the imported ones being used in the country.
What is HET?
The HET is the first Filipino-built train that can accommodate 880 passengers. It is air-conditioned, and it runs on similar technology that powers Toyota’s Prius hybrid cars. It is scheduled to be deployed in the first quarter of the year in order to bring relief to thousands of commuters.
Only six to seven of PNR’s 11 train sets work on any given day, as the five others undergo maintenance. According to PNR spokesperson Joseline Geronimo, PNR should ideally have 15 trains running. With the new trains being added to their fleet, Geronimo said they are excited for the DOST-built trains that could be in service by March.
It cost P120 million to develop the HET, which is a lot cheaper than the Indonesian-made locomotives that PNR ordered at $47.4 million (P2.37 billion).
