MANILA - The northern portion of the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) may start operations as early as 2026, the head of the Philippine National Railways said on Wednesday.

"We believe that in about a year and a half pwede na ho kaming magpatakbo. Matatapos na yan at least sa Northern Line," said PNR Chairman Michael Macapagal in an interview with ABS-CBN News.

"Clark to Valenzuela is the northern line of the NSCR project. Overall, it is 60 percent completed. The stations, 12 of which, are between 80 to 90 percent completed."

The northern line’s 12 stations are: Clark, Angeles, San Fernando, Apalit, Calumpit, Malolos, Guiguinto, Balagtas, Bocaue, Meycauayan, Tabing Ilog, and Valenzuela.

The NSCR is a 147-kilometer mass transit system that is planned to connect Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna. It is expected to service up to 800,000 passengers daily and cut travel time from Clark Airport to Calamba, Laguna to less than two hours.

The project costs P873.62 billion and is financed by the Asian Development Bank and the Japan International Cooperation Agency.

'Construction at the soonest'

While the northern line is nearing completion, the southern line is still having right-of-way issues, according to Macapagal.

"Construction will hopefully begin in the soonest," Macapagal said, adding that the agency is “making progress” in resolving these issues. He also said track removal and fencing activities are now ongoing.

The agency is tasked to relocate families affected by the project.

Last March, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista also said the NSCR will begin partial operations in the third quarter of 2026, while full operations will commence in 2029.

Bautista said the Malolos, Bulacan to Clark, Pampanga section of the project will be operable in 2026.

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