Metro Pacific eyes Cavite-Laguna expressway

MANILA, Philippines - While it failed to acquire a stake in Metro Manila’s southern tollroad network, Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) said it is still upbeat on its prospects this year as it sets its sights on other infrastructure projects that the government will bid out this year, among which is the P19.69-billion CALA (Cavite and Laguna) Expressway.

MPTC president and chief executive officer Ramon Fernandez said the group remains on the lookout for opportunities while at the same time expanding its network in the north.

“We remain committed to building good quality tollroads. We’re still looking at potential good projects and we remain focused. The CALA project is a major one, so we’re definitely interested in that,” Fernandez said.

The CALA project includes the construction of a six-lane 27.2-kilometer highway connecting Bacoor and Dasmariñas, and linking the Manila-Cavite Coastal Road in the north, to the proposed East-West Cavite-Laguna Expressway in the south.

Fernandez said the group remains committed to maximizing traffic and improving customer satisfaction.

MPTC, the parent company of North Luzon expressway concessionaire Manila North Tollways Corp., is also preparing for the NLEX Phase 2 expansion program, which would entail the construction of the Harbor Link, an eight-kilometer extension connecting the NLEX westward to Manila’s port area.

Estimated to cost P10 billion, the NLEX Harbor Link will be made up of two parts: Segment 9 and Segment 10 which are designed to make the expressway more accessible to motorists.

This expressway link is expected to significantly speed up and reduce the cost of transporting cargo from Central and Northern Luzon to the North Harbor, the domestic port complex of Metro Manila.

Segment 9, measuring 2.42 kilometers long, will link the NLEX to McArthur Highway, the old route to Central and Northern Luzon. When completed, this road will ease traffic at the NLEX’s Valenzuela interchange, help decongest the Balintawak-Cubao stretch of Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA), and is expected to spur the development of Metro Manila’s flood-prone Camanava (Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela) area.

MNTC president Rodrigo E. Franco said they are awaiting the final government approval of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx) prior to taking full control of the highway.

With full control, Franco said MNTC is ready to spend more than P300 million to integrate the SCTEX and NLEX and refurbish existing facilities for the convenience of the motoring public.