Student train fare discount raised to 50 percent

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation (DOTr) raised the student discount in all of Metro Manila’s railways from 20 to 50 percent, as instructed by President Marcos.

In the second episode of Marcos’ podcast posted on social media yesterday, the President said higher fare discounts should be granted to students and senior citizens, who usually face financial challenges.

“Because everywhere I go, senior citizens and students are given high (fare discount), 50 percent,” Marcos said.

At a Palace briefing, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said students could avail themselves of the 50 percent discount in Light Rail Transit Lines (LRT) 1 and 2 and Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) every day, including weekends and holidays.

Castro said students who are taking graduate and post-graduate studies are also qualified for the fare discount.

The DOTr clarified that the promo is only valid for single journey tickets and not applicable for Beep cards or stored value cards.

To avail, students must present a valid school ID or any school registration form within the current school year.

For train trips on the LRT-2 which services the University Belt and where an estimated 80,000 students ride each day, students will only have to pay fares between P8 and P18, a drop from the regular fares from P15 to P35.

Students boarding the MRT-3 train – with regular fares from P13 to P28 – can enjoy discounted fares from P6 to P14 while at LRT-1 students will only be charged P10 to P28.

In April, the Light Rail Manila Corp. implemented higher fares for LRT-1 between P20 and P55 for single-journey tickets.

All students will be able to enjoy the increased fare discounts on trains until 2028, the DOTr said.

Castro, meanwhile, said the government is still studying the 50 percent discount on trains for senior citizens.