Starting 1 February, pet cats and dogs will be allowed in the stations and trains of LRT Line 2. This is good news to all fur parents using the train systems who want to bring along their babies when traveling.
In a Laging Handa press briefing, LRTA Administrator Hernando Cabrera said pet owners must abide by the train system’s rules and regulations. These are:
• Pets should be fully vaccinated.
• They should be put in proper cages not to disturb other passengers.
• Must wear diapers.
New Zealand and ASPCA
Only pets of certain sizes are allowed, yet Cabrera didn’t specify which are acceptable.
“Kapag malalaki na kasi mahihirapan na ipasok sa tren. Alam mo naman, siksikan sa tren minsan (It will be difficult to deal with if it will be big dogs. As you know, it can get congested in trains sometimes),” he said.
Cabrera adds that they purposely allocated a couple of days before the official implementation to brief all security personnel on adequately handling the new policy.
“Of course, on the first day or first week, may mga gusot gusot tayo (there’ll be issues). Ang sa atin lang naman is i-implement na agad at ayusin whatever operational and concerns or issues ang haharapin (We want to implement immediately and fix whatever operational concerns and issues we may face). Our goal is to make our system pet-friendly,” he said.
The new policy, however, is only applicable to LRT Line 2.
“MRT 3 implemented the same policy years ago. Line 1 hasn’t yet, but eventually, we will be able to involve its private operator to have the same policy,” Cabrera said.
The pet policy follows the impending fare hike of all the LRT lines, which, said the LRTA Administrator, still needs to be discussed in a public hearing.
In 2022, the LRT recorded a daily ridership of 10,000 passengers. It achieved its highest in December, with 159,000 commuters daily for Line 2.
With mobility almost back to normal, the daily count of passengers is expected to reach 180,000 to 200,000 daily.