LRT-1 opens QR, beep express lanes

MANILA, Philippines — The Light Rail Transit Line 1 has opened special “QR and beep” express lanes for passengers who carry reloadable stored-value cards or purchase train tickets using a QR code, LRT-1 operator Light Rail Manila Corp. (LRMC) said yesterday.

These special lanes will be at the railway’s EDSA, Libertad, Quirino, Monumento, Balintawak, and Fernando Poe Jr. (formerly Roosevelt) stations.

Commuters should look for yellow signages for QR code and beep lanes at station’s entrance, the LRMC said. The lanes would lead straight to the mechanical turnstiles, where the QR code or beep card would be scanned.

Those with stored-value cards should make sure they contain enough load to be able to pass through the ticket gates, the LRT-1 operator reminded commuters.

The designation of special lanes for QR code and beep users would “help accelerate the commute time of our passengers,” the LRMC said.

The lanes would spare QR code and beep users the time and energy spent in buying single-journey train tickets, especially during the Christmas season, when more people travel, according to LRMC operations head Andrea Madrid.

She added the measure would “promote contactless transactions and modernize our ticketing experience.”

LRT-1 passengers can buy train tickets using QR code through the ikotMNL app, while others could load their stored-value cards at ticketing kiosks in the stations or through the beep app, the LRMC said.