User:Hachijo8/NLR

The PNR North Long Haul Project is a proposed rail network serving the northern half of the island of Luzon, Philippines. It is comprised of three interconnecting railroad lines further north from the North–South Commuter Railway; the Subic–Clark Railway in the western areas of Central Luzon, the North Long Haul West to the historic San Fernando U station in San Fernando, La Union, and North Long Haul East to Tuguegarao, Cagayan

Along with the North–South Commuter Railway, PNR South Long Haul, Northeast Commuter Line, North Philippine Dry Port Rail Service, and the Port of Manila–Batangas freight proposal, the project is part of the Luzon Rail System. It is the Philippine National Railways' efforts to connect the island of Luzon by a network of standard-gauge lines. All of the three component projects are set to supersede the PNR North Main Line which has been almost completely closed until 2018. However, only the Subic–Clark segment has been approved as a freight line as part of the Build! Build! Build! Program.

History
The 266 km North Main Line was first opened by the Manila–Dagupan Railway Company in 1892. Later on, the line was extended to San Fernando, La Union and for a brief period, to Sudipen near the Ilocos Sur border. Branch lines leading to various locations in Tarlac and Nueva Ecija were also opened before the war and remained open until the 1980s.

However, PNR suffered growing neglect starting by the 1970s due to calamities, insurgencies and underspending from the government. The eventual closure of the North Main Line was one of its visible signs. By 1984, services north of Tarlac were terminated including the bus services leading to Baguio. By 1988, the North Main Line outside of Metro Manila was closed after over 100 years of operations. Starting 1991, intermittent service was halted as all Central Luzon stations on the North Main Line were closed due to the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo.

Contemporary plans
Since then, plans were called for the rehabilitation of the North Main Line. The most popular proposal was the so-called Northrail project, an urban rail transit line from Manila to Malolos, Bulacan. It would have had the characteristics of both commuter rail and rapid transit It was cancelled in 2011 after issues arose from acquisition of property. In 2014, a proposal was created for a new railway system leading to both Ilocos Region and Cagayan Valley.

Subic–Clark Railway
The Subic–Clark Railway project is the a freight line between the Subic Special Economic and Freeport Zone and the Clark International Airport. The line has been in planning stages since the announcement of the Manila–Dagupan Railroad's General Plan for Railroads in the Island of Luzon in 1875, which would pave the way to the historic PNR network. However, the plan never materialized until the 21st century.

There will be three terminals for the project: Subic New Container Terminal (NCT) for containerized freight, Subic Logistics Terminal for non-containerized goods, and Clark Logistics Terminal in Mabalacat, Pampanga which will handle both types of freight. The rolling stock depot will be located near Clark Logistics Terminal and the NSCR North Phase 2 Depot, both of which are near the Clark International Airport station.

According to a 2018 press briefing held by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, the line will be augmented with the North–South Commuter Railway and the North Long Haul East and West to form a rail network throughout northern and Central Luzon.

Passenger service provision
The passenger provision for the SCR also comes together with the electrification and double-tracking of the line. Due to Roque's statement to augment the line with the NSCR, it is expected that the electrification standard will also use the Japanese 1,500 volt DC system instead of the 25 kV AC railway electrification used by Chinese lines. There will be five stations proposed: Subic, Dinalupihan, Floridablanca, Porac, and Clark. It is expected that the line will be built on or before 2040 with the maximum speed being 160 km/h.

North Long Haul West
The New Clark City–Tarlac–San Fernando Line will be a 159–175 km rail line connecting New Clark City and San Fernando, La Union. Along with the NSCR North Phases 1 and 2, the line will rehabilitate the 265 km length of the old North Main Line, which ended its intercity services in 1988. The maximum speed for the line will be 160 km/h since it will be augmented to the NSCR at New Clark City station.

The 2014 JICA study mentioned that a 70 km section of the line between NCC and Tarlac City will be later upgraded with electrification as part of the NSCR North Phase 3 and the Northeast Commuter Line.

Tarlac–San Jose–Tuguegarao Line
The Tarlac–San Jose–Tuguegarao Line is a 309 km proposed rail line from Tarlac City to Tuguegarao, Cagayan.

It was in planning stages since the founding of the original Manila–Dagupan Railway on April 28, 1882. It was then revived in the 1950s and construction reached until San Jose, Nueva Ecija to the south of the tunnel and between Isabela and Enrile, Cagayan to the north. However, due to the lack of funding for the drilling of a 10 km rail tunnel, only the section of the line leading to San Jose was operational until all intercity services on the North Main Line have been closed in 1988. More contemporary proposals to complete the line, under the Arroyo, Aquino, and the incumbent Duterte administration. Juan Ponce Enrile also included the revival of the line as part of his senatorial reelection bid. While he did not succeed in his reelection bid, the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority supports a highway and railroad system between Manila and Tuguegarao, and eventually to Aparri.

PNR has requested a feasibility study to the National Economic and Development Authority in 2019 for the Tarlac–San Jose branch line, which will eventually become the phase 4 of the North–South Commuter Railway.

North Dry Port
The North Philippine Dry Port Rail Service is the connecting line between the Subic–Clark Railway and the Port of Manila.