BUILDING RAILWAYS WITHOUT TRAINS

BUILDING RAILWAYS WITHOUT TRAINS

Please do not get me wrong. The railways will still have trains running on them. What I am proposing is that the railways and the trains should be built by two separate agencies — not lumped under one overburdened bureaucracy.

To go straight to the point: the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) should build the railways, while the Department of Transportation (DOTr) should build and operate the trains.

That is how it already works on our highways. The DPWH builds the roads, and the DOTr regulates the vehicles. The logic is simple: one agency takes care of infrastructure, the other handles transport systems and operations. So why can’t we do the same for railways?

Division of Labor, Not Duplication of Work

This is not about creating bureaucratic overlap — it’s about functional specialization. The DPWH has the engineering expertise for land acquisition, bridges, tunnels, and track alignment. The DOTr, on the other hand, knows rolling stock, signaling systems, and commuter operations.

If both functions remain under one roof, one tends to lag behind the other. We have seen this many times: expensive rail projects completed without enough trains, or trains delivered years before the tracks are ready. A clear division of labor could change that.

In other countries, this separation of functions is standard practice. In Singapore, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) builds and maintains the rail infrastructure, while private operators like SMRT and SBS Transit manage the trains. In the Netherlands, ProRail builds the tracks, while NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) operates the trains. Both systems work — efficiently and transparently.

Learning from the World, Building Our Own

We have long depended on imported trains. Since the first locomotive was invented in 1804 — yes, more than two centuries ago — many nations have learned to build their own trains. After 221 years, perhaps it’s time the Philippines caught up.

Why should we continue to import something that we can learn to manufacture ourselves? Making train coaches is not very different from making bus bodies — and we are already good at building those. In fact, Filipino companies like Santarosa Motor Works and Del Monte Motor Works have been manufacturing world-class bus bodies for years.

The more challenging part may be building the train engines, but that is not beyond the capability of Filipino scientists and engineers. With proper funding and collaboration with universities and local manufacturers, we could start a Philippine Rolling Stock Industry — an entirely new industrial sector that would create jobs, boost local innovation, and reduce dependence on imports.

Trains and Technology

Let’s not forget that our neighbors have already moved far ahead. Japan has mastered the bullet train. China is already running maglev (magnetic levitation) trains that float on air. Even Indonesia, which once looked to us for technical guidance, has started developing its own rolling stock and assembly plants through PT INKA (Industri Kereta Api).

So, the question is: when will we start?

We could begin with something more modest, like tramways — the lower-tech cousin of modern railways. These are cheaper, easier to maintain, and can serve provincial towns and smaller cities where a full-scale railway would be overkill. Tramways also promote tourism and local commerce.

Governance and Efficiency

Dividing responsibility between DPWH and DOTr is not just practical — it’s good governance. Each agency can focus on its strengths. DPWH can handle civil works and infrastructure rollout, while DOTr can focus on transport operations, rolling stock procurement, and public service delivery.

This modular approach also allows for staggered budgeting: DPWH can frontload spending for infrastructure, while DOTr can allocate funds for trains and technology as demand grows. It also enables adaptive procurement — letting us buy or build trains that match modern standards instead of being locked into outdated specs by the time the tracks are finished.

Of course, coordination will be key. There should be a Joint Planning Board between DPWH and DOTr, aligned on route design, train specs, and community impact. Local governments, particularly in provinces hosting new rail lines, must also be consulted to ensure integration with land use plans and social needs.

A Vision for the Future

If we can separate the way we build railways and operate trains, we can move faster, spend smarter, and govern better. It’s time we learned from the best — and then built our own.

We can begin small, one line at a time. But the goal should be bold: a Philippine-built train system that runs on Philippine-built railways.

Because in the end, it’s not about the trains or the tracks — it’s about our capacity to innovate, to adapt, and to stop depending on others for what we should have built ourselves a long time ago.

The technology is already there. What we need now is political will, strategic division of labor, and a nation that dares to believe that it can finally build — not just railways, but the trains that will run upon them.

Ramon Ike V. Seneres, www.facebook.com/ike.seneres

iseneres@yahoo.com, senseneres.blogspot.com

02-16-2026

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