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Tunnel drilling for Metro Manila's 1st subway set to begin

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Kyodo News

<div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=354631020135290&amp;set=pcb.354631536801905" data-width="auto"> </div><p>The Philippines unveiled Sunday a tunnel drilling machine to start the underground construction of the country&#x27;s first-ever subway being undertaken with Japanese financial support to ease road congestion in overcrowded Manila.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/06/12/22/duterte-ibinaba-ang-tunnel-boring-machine-ng-metro-manila-subway">Duterte, ibinaba ang tunnel boring machine ng Metro Manila subway project</a></li></ul><p>President Rodrigo Duterte, who is stepping down June 30 after a single six-year term as president, led the event that coincided with the Philippines&#x27; 124th commemoration of declaring independence from Spain.</p><p>The Philippines also came under Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945 during World War II.</p><p>&quot;Past is past. But until now, Japan has continued to help us to the extent that (we are) being treated as almost a part of Japan that should be developed in due time,&quot; Duterte said. </p><div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=354631436801915&amp;set=pcb.354631536801905" data-width="auto"> </div><p>He said the subway is a &quot;gift from the Japanese people to the people of the Philippines.&quot;</p><p>The 33-kilometer subway is meant to cut by half the one-hour travel time between Manila&#x27;s major airport and the northern portion of the metropolis. It is funded by a 357.8 billion yen ($2.66 billion) loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/02/10/22/ph-japan-sign-253-billion-yen-loan-for-subway-project">PH, Japan sign 253 billion yen (P112.9-B) loan for subway project</a></li></ul><p>The project has been contracted out to Japanese companies and the drilling machine was brought in from Japan.</p><p>There were proposals for a subway as early as 1973, but it was only in 2017 that the project finally took shape. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, stalled the initial construction and has pushed back the start of the train operation to 2025.</p><p>Also Sunday, Duterte led the commissioning of the second 97-meter patrol vessel the Philippines acquired through a Japanese yen-denominated loan. The ship, meant to beef up the Philippine Coast Guard&#x27;s capability, is identical to an earlier patrol vessel modeled after the Japan Coast Guard&#x27;s Kunigami-class vessels.</p><div><strong>==Kyodo</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1381631" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

The Philippines unveiled Sunday a tunnel drilling machine to start the underground construction of the country's first-ever subway being undertaken with Japanese financial support to ease road congestion in overcrowded Manila.