Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark A. Villar announced that the construction of the NLEX Connector is now in full swing and is now 35 percent complete. Upon completion, it will go hand-in-hand with the new Skyway Stage 3 in providing motorists faster routes from the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) to the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), and vice versa.
Lying in the heart of Manila
With a project cost of P23 billion, the NLEX Connector aims to connect the Caloocan Interchange and Sta. Mesa using two sections. The first section is a 5-km elevated expressway between Harbor-Link Caloocan Interchange and España Boulevard in Sampaloc, Manila.
Construction of the second section should commence next month
Meanwhile, the second section is a 3-km elevated expressway between España Interchange and the vicinity of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Sta. Mesa should be ready for construction by June 2021. According to the government agency, the project should accommodate 35,000 motorists daily once it starts its operations.
“We are working together with NLEX to expedite the right-of-way delivery within the properties of the Philippine National Railways (PNR). Bored piling works and concrete casting of columns have started in the Manila area from Solis all the way to Dimasalang,” said DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar.
More road projects are expected to be completed
The NLEX Connector aims to cut the travel time from NLEX to SLEX from two hours to just 20 minutes. To further improve the travel time, NLEX Corporation is now testing a new toll collection system called automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) to complement the radio frequency identification system (RFID) within its toll gates.
“We are doing everything we can to accelerate the completion of this high-impact expressway that will benefit the motoring public. The entire 8-km NLEX Connector is vital to ensure improved mobility within Metro Manila,” said NLEX Corporation President and GM J. Luigi L. Bautista.
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