Planning and funding being built in
Bruges in 1982 The Metro Manila Transport, Land Use, and Development Planning Project (MMETROPLAN), a fourteen-month study conducted by
Freeman Fox and Associates and funded by the
World Bank, recommended the construction of a street-level (at-grade)
light rail line in Manila and the proposed four lines that were included in the study that would run along Rizal Avenue, Taft Avenue,
España Boulevard,
Quezon Avenue, and
Shaw Boulevard. Following a review by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, later the
Department of Transportation (DOTr), the proposal was revised to an
elevated railway to avoid building over the city's many intersections, this raised the project's cost from ₱1.5 billion to ₱2 billion. An alignment along Rizal and Taft avenues, which spanned from
Monumento,
Caloocan in the north to
Baclaran,
Pasay in the south, was selected because it followed a relatively straight path for most of its route. On July 12, 1980, President
Ferdinand Marcos created the
Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) and assigned
First Lady and
Governor of Metro Manila Imelda Marcos as its chairman. While the LRTA confined its roles to policy making, fare regulation, and future planning, the line's operations were assigned to Meralco Transit Organization (Metro, Inc.), a sister company of
Meralco. The line came to be referred to as Metrorail. During that month, a Belgian
consortium was chosen over other bids from France, Germany, Japan, and Switzerland. Driven piles were originally used for 80 percent of the project, with spread footings being used for the remaining portion. However, during construction, it was determined that bored piles should be utilized in some areas to mitigate noise and avoid potential damage to nearby buildings. Additionally, the original use of stockpiled precast piles caused clutter on the streets during construction. Work finally resumed after the economic recession in September of that year along Taft Avenue, between
Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) and Libertad Street. In order to make way for
Carriedo station and a segment of tracks approaching the
Pasig River, a
department store and a classroom building nearby
FEATI University were demolished. During the first several years, two-car trains that could accommodate up to 748 passengers were utilized. This amounted to a capacity of 20,000 passengers per direction. In July 2000, with the looming expiration of its contract with the LRTA, a labor strike was launched by employees of Meralco Transit Organization (METRO, Inc.). It paralyzed the operations of the line for a week. The LRTA decided not to renew its contract with METRO, Inc. that expired on July 31, 2000, and the former assumed operational responsibility.
Capacity expansion and facelift Line 1 would eventually reach capacity by 1990 due to traffic congestion and air pollution. This led to an extensive refurbishing and structural capacity expansion program funded by Japan's
official development assistance. The signing of the loan agreement in December 1994 marked the start of the project. A
consortium of
Marubeni Corporation,
Adtranz, and
ABB was tapped in 1996 to execute the project. As part of the initial phase of the expansion project, in addition to structural improvements,
Hyundai Precision & Industries supplied
seven four-car trains, while the
original two-car trains were converted into three-car trains in 1999. In line with the introduction of four-car trains, the station platforms were also extended. JBIC extended an loan for the second phase of the capacity expansion project, The implementation of the project was delayed for three years amid allegations of irregularities with the bidding conducted by the LRTA. The second phase of the capacity expansion project was divided into two packages. Package A involves the procurement of
twelve four-car trains, upgrades to the signaling and communications systems, and upgrades to the stations and depot. Package B, on the other hand, involves the procurement and installation of
air conditioning units for the
1000 class trains, replacement of faulty air conditioning units of the
1100 class trains, renovation of of
railway track and
railway sleepers, and procurement of equipment and spare parts used for track works. The installation of equipment for the
automatic fare collection system was also included. The project was completed in June 2009, five and a half years behind its initial deadline. However, the extension was shelved by then-President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in favor of a extension of Line 1 to a
common station at North Avenue. The project involved the construction of three stations: , Roosevelt (renamed
Fernando Poe Jr.), and the
North Triangle Common Station. However, due to disputes in the common station's location, the station would only begin construction in 2017, however following the termination of its contractor due to repeated delays, resulted to opening date pushed back to 2027. Construction began in June 2008. The joint venture of
DMCI and First Balfour built the viaduct and the two stations, while the electrical and mechanical systems contracts were assigned to different contractors. Balintawak station opened on March 22, 2010, with FPJ station opening exactly seven months later. In September 2008, then-mayor of
Caloocan Enrico Echiverri, petitioned the government to construct
Malvar station, an intemediary station between Balintawak and Monumento. Two months later, two thousand residents from Barangay Bagong Barrio, where the station would be built, staged a protest along
EDSA to urge the government to build the station. Malvar station would eventually be approved in July 2009. Though it was reported that the feasibility study for the station was completed, the proposal was also identified in the Metro Manila Urban Transportation Integration Study Master Plan by the
Japan International Cooperation Agency. However, the project never materialized.
SNC-Lavalin then proposed a physical extension of LRT Line 1 to the province. The extension was first approved by the
National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) on August 25, 2000, while its implementing agreement was approved on January 22, 2002. In 2003, the company would invest more than $1 billion in the extension project. After this proposal was terminated on May 3, 2006, The project was later shelved, but on February 25, 2010, President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo revived plans to extend the line to Cavite. On March 22, 2012, Arroyo's successor, President
Benigno Aquino III approved the ₱60-billion Cavite Extension Project. Dubbed as the biggest infrastructure project under
his presidency, the bidding process started on June 4. Although it attracted huge interest from foreign and local firms, four managed to pre-qualify. However, the bidding itself failed in August 2013 due to all but one withdrawing from the tender due to "financial risks", leaving the lone bidder—
Metro Pacific Investments—submitting a conditional, non-compliant bid. The revised bidding terms were then sent back to NEDA for re-approval; it was subsequently re-approved on November 21, 2013. The project was subsequently rebidded and on September 12, 2014, the
Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC) was awarded the 32-year concession to operate, maintain, and extend the line to Cavite. The concession agreement was signed on October 2, with the turnover taking place on September 12, 2015. in front of
Uniwide Coastal Mall in November 2021. On May 4, 2017, the , three-phase Cavite Extension broke ground. Another ceremony was held on May 7, 2019, to mark the start of construction, although civil works began the following September 1. It calls for the construction of eight stations, with provisions for an additional two, the construction of three intermodal facilities, one satellite depot at Zapote, and mass upgrades to the existing Baclaran depot.