LRT-1 pilots exclusive lanes for QR, Beep users  

MANILA, Philippines — The Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) has opened exclusive lanes for commuters paying via QR or with Beep at select stations of the Light Rail Transit Line 1 (LRT-1) to minimize long queues amid the Christmas rush.

In an advisory, LRMC said it is piloting the implementation of QR and Beep lanes at several stations of the LRT-1 to smoothen the travel experience of passengers.

These exclusive lanes for QR and Beep users provide them with a straight to gate privilege from the security inspection area.

LRMC said the initiative seeks to cut the queue lengths at select stations of the LRT-1.

It hopes to also promote the use of stored value cards among LRT-1 commuters.

QR and Beep lanes are now being piloted in the EDSA, Libertad, Quirino, Monumento, Balintawak and Fernando Poe Jr. (formerly known as Roosevelt) stations.

Passengers are also advised to check signages at station entrances for further details.

LRMC head of operations Andrea Madrid said the operator decided to open these exclusive lanes to speed up the travel time of commuters during the holiday rush.

“As LRMC gears up for the holiday peak travel, we are introducing this initiative at select LRT-1 stations to help accelerate the commute time of our passengers,” Madrid said.

“Passengers can get into the QR and Beep lanes to save time and energy, as well as money, since Beep users are enjoying discounted fares compared to using single journey tickets,” she added.

LRMC is also continuing to modernize the ticketing system in LRT-1 after introducing a feature enabling the purchase of single journey tickets through digital bank Maya last May.

Commuters may buy QR tickets for LRT-1 through Maya and LRMC’s app ikotMN, while stored value cards may be reloaded through the Beep app and in loading machines in LRT-1 stations.

The operator is working on multiple projects to enhance the travel experience at the LRT-1, including the expansion of the railway all the way to Cavite.

It also started adding new train sets to LRT-1 in July with the goal of supporting the ridership growth in the rail line.