Makati subway scrapped over turf war

What was once envisioned as a groundbreaking piece of urban transport—the country’s first city-led underground railway—has formally hit a dead end.

Philippine Infradev Holdings, Inc., the private proponent behind the ambitious Makati City subway project, said in a stock exchange disclosure on Friday that its Board of Directors had resolved to exit the joint venture agreement (JVA) with the Makati City government.

The company said it could no longer pursue the project after the Supreme Court (SC) ruled that several of the planned subway stations and the depot site now fall under the jurisdiction of Taguig City.

“Continuing with the Makati City Subway Project under the JVA with the Makati City Government was rendered no longer economically and operationally feasible due primarily to the Philippine SC's decision declaring some subway stations and depot to be under the jurisdiction of Taguig City instead of the Makati City,” the company said.

Infradev added that it has initiated arbitration proceedings before the Singapore International Arbitration Centre “to enable an impartial resolution of the JVA with the Makati City.”

In April 2022, the SC’s Third Division ruled with finality that Bonifacio Global City and the adjacent Enlisted Men’s Barrio (EMBO) barangays were under the jurisdiction of Taguig City.

In June 2023, the Supreme Court rejected Makati City’s motion to file a second motion for reconsideration, effectively ending its legal remedies in the territorial dispute.

Before the conclusion of the legal case, Makati City had already broken ground on its subway project in 2018.

In 2019, it signed a JVA with Infradev following the latter’s successful bid through a Swiss Challenge and subsequent approval from the Makati City Council for the subway’s construction, operation, and management.

Infradev partnered with Chinese firms Greenland Holdings Group, Jiangsu Provincial Construction Group Co. Ltd., and China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. for the project.

Under the agreement, Makati’s participation was limited to contributing land it already owned, with no government expenditure involved.

The project was designed to link key locations in Makati, including the Central Business District at Ayala Avenue and Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Circuit Makati, City Hall, the University of Makati, and Ospital ng Makati. It was planned to feature up to 10 underground, air-conditioned island stations, with entrances connected to major destinations throughout the city.

The subway system was envisioned to accommodate six-car trains, each capable of carrying more than 200 passengers and projected to serve over 700,000 commuters daily.