Manila Line 4 Shadow Operations Consultant

Challenge

Line 4 is a 15km rapid transit route under construction between the province of Rizal and the central business district in eastern Manila. As well as improving connectivity between the populous southwestern municipalities, Line 4 will relieve traffic congestion on one of the city’s busiest highways.

To support design and construction, the Department of Transportation appointed Ricardo as Shadow Operations Consultant in March 2023.

Approach

As Shadow Operations Consultant, our team will provide advice and technical input from the viewpoint of the eventual Line 4 concessionaire, helping the project’s designers and construction partners incorporate the day-to-day needs of a modern rapid transit system during key decision points.

The full scope of the Shadow Operation Consultant role covers many of the performance, safety integrity, lifecycle cost and environmental safeguards stipulated by the Asian Development Bank in its loan agreement to help commence works.

Our responsibilities will range from helping to optimise whole-life costs (such as technology and design recommendations that will influence future staffing requirements), to identifying operational risks and safety hazards, developing passenger flow models, and advising on recruitment, rostering and work scheduling.

Results

Attending an event in March 2023 to mark the commencement of our role, Transport Secretary, Jaime J. Bautista, said Ricardo’s expertise “will help elevate MRT-4 operations to international standards”. 

The contract was awarded following our successful performance of the same role during the expansion of Sydney’s metro network.