The Department of Transportation (DOTr) is pushing to complete 12 relocation buildings by the end of the year for families affected by the North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) project.

Acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez said on Wednesday that he ordered the relocation site construction to be expedited so that displaced residents can immediately move into their new homes.

The relocation project, funded by the DOTr, involves the construction of 82 three-storey buildings under the Social Housing Finance Corp. The first 12 sites set for completion by December can provide housing for 360 families. 

Meanwhile, the DOTr is also set to visit another relocation site this week for residents affected by the NSCR project in Angeles City, Pampanga.

To recall, the DOTr is preparing to open the bidding process for the operations and maintenance  of the NSCR, a P250-billion contract expected to be awarded by mid-2026, giving the winning operator ample time to prepare for the railway’s partial operations, targeted for December 2027.

Co-financed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the Asian Development Bank, the 147-kilometer NSCR line will connect Calamba, Laguna, to Clark, Pampanga, reducing travel time to under two hours and serving up to 800,000 passengers daily.

The NSCR is among DOTr’s flagship projects under its Flagship Projects Management Office. Its completion is expected to ease congestion on major roads and tollways while transforming commuting patterns across Metro Manila and nearby regions.