The Metro Rail Transit Line 4 (MRT-4) will help ease traffic in the eastern side of Metro Manila as it can accommodate thousands of passengers daily once it starts operations, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said Thursday.

Bautista and winning Project Consultant Ricardo Rail Australia Pty Ltd. signed Thursday the Shadow Operator Consultant (SOC) contract for the MRT-4, an Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded big-ticket railway project.

Bautista said MRT-4 is expected to alleviate traffic problem along Ortigas Avenue, in Pasig and Mandaluyong cities, and encourage car users to take the train.

"Once operational, the more than 400,000 passengers expected to ride the MRT 4 will be more than grateful for solving the perennial traffic problem along the stretch of Ortigas Avenue," Sec. Bautista said.

The transport chief pointed out that the experience and expertise of the shadow operator consultant will help elevate MRT-4 operations to international standards.

"The key words in the arrangement are 'internationally accepted best practices' in railway engineering," he added.

Having a key role in the eventual operations and maintenance of MRT-4, the consultant's contract is a 12-month agreement that aims to identify, define, and develop internationally accepted best practice operational and maintenance requirements.

Awarded to Ricardo Rail Australia Pty Ltd. on January 31, the consultant's objective is to prepare for hand over to the Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Concessionaire, and ensure that the designs of the engineering and architectural consultant are followed.

Intended to serve the eastern side of the metropolis including the highly-populated areas of the province of Rizal, the MRT-4 is approximately 13.4-kilometer long proposed railway mass-transit system.

The 10-station, elevated metro rail transit will traverse along Ortigas Avenue and Ortigas Avenue Extension, starting at EDSA Station near Robinsons Galleria in Quezon City and ending at Taytay Station near the Taytay Public Market and the intersection of Taytay Diversion Road and Manila East Road. DOTr