NIGHT OWL
Anna Mae Yu Lamentillo
After six administrations, the road traversing the old Smokey Mountain area congested by informal settlers is now a high-capacity highway helping offset the usual heavy volume of vehicles in major highways like EDSA and C5. The 9.7-kilometer R-10 stretching from Delpan Bridge, Tondo, Manila, to the mouth of the Malabon River at Bangkulasi Bridge, C-4 Road in Navotas City, may now be used as an alternate route to EDSA and C5 for motorists traveling from Quezon City to Manila and Pasay.
This vital alignment will be connected to the NLEX Harbor Link Project, a 5.7-km expressway, which traverses Karuhatan in Valenzuela City, Governor Pascual Avenue in Malabon City, and C3 road in Caloocan City. When completed this year, the project is expected to reduce travel time from Manila Port to NLEX to only ten minutes.
The NLEX Harbor Link Project is one of the 18 expressways which will compose the Luzon Spine Expressway Network, a 1,040-km expressway network which would connect the northern and southern most part of Luzon. By building an additional road network of 655 km, Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar aims to compliment the existing expressway network spanning 385 km. Once completed, the travel time from Metro Manila to San Fernando, La Union, will be reduced from six hours and 55 minutes to three hours and 10 minutes. Moreover, travel time from La Union to Bicol will be reduced from 19 hours and 40 minutes to eight hours and 15 minutes.
Also included in the Luzon Spine Expressway Network are the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway, the Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX), the Plaridel Bypass, the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3, the NLEX-SLEX Connector Road Project, the NAIA Expressway, the Laguna Lake Highway, the Southeast Metro Manila Expressway, the Cavite-Laguna Expressway, the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) Toll Road 4 (TR4), and the Quezon-Bicol Expressway.
Section 3 of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway is a 25.83-km expressway which extends the existing 63.02-km alignment traversing Tarlac, Rosales, and Urdaneta to Binalonan, Pozzurobio, and La Union — creating an 88.85-kilometer stretch. The Urdaneta-Binalonan segment which was operational since September of last year has reduced travel time from Tarlac City to Urdaneta from 2 hours and 30 minutes to about 40 minutes. Upon completion, TPLEX is expected to benefit over 100,000 vehicles per day and will cut travel time to Gerona, Paniqui, Rosales, Urdaneta, and Rosario.
The Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) is a 30-km expressway, which traverses the municipalities of La Paz, Zaragosa, Aliaga, and Caalibangbangan, to connect the two large cities of Tarlac and Cabanatuan. The CLLEX, which originates from the connection of SCTEx and of TPLEx in Balincanaway, Tarlac City, is expected to decongest traffic in the Pan Philippine Highway by 48% and reduce travel time between Tarlac City and Cabanatuan City from 70 minutes to 20 minutes.
Plaridel Bypass Road is an arterial road of 24.61 km that will link the NLEX in Balagtas, Bulacan with the Maharlika Highway in San Rafael, Bulacan.
The Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3, a 14.8-km, 6-lane expressway which will connect Balintawak in Quezon City to Buendia Makati, is expected to decongest EDSA, Quezon Avenue, Araneta Avenue, and Quirino Avenue by as much as 55,000 vehicles daily. Upon completion, it will reduce travel time from Buendia to Balintawak from 2 hours to 15 to 20 minutes.
The NLEX-SLEX Connector Road, an 8-km four-lane expressway, which will traverse C3 road in Caloocan City passing through Blumentritt and España, is expected to decongest Metro Manila traffic and provide better access to seaports and airports. It will reduce travel time from NLEX to SLEX from 2 hours to only about 20 minutes. It will also cut travel from Clark to Calamba from 3 hours to only about 1 hour and 40 minutes.
The Southeast Metro Manila Expressway, C-6 (Phase I) TRB is a 34 kms. expressway from Skyway FTI, Paranaque City to Batasan, Quezon City. It will reduce travel time from Bicutan to Batasan from 1 hour and 50 minutes to 26 minutes.
The Cavite Laguna Expressway is a 4-lane 44.20 km. closed-system tolled expressway connecting Cavitex and SLEX. When finished on 2020, it will reduce the travel time of 45 minutes from Cavitex to SLEX.
The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) Toll Road 4 (TR4) TRB is a 56.87-km expressway extension from Sto. Tomas, Batangas, to Tayabas / Lucena, Quezon. Travel time will be reduced from 4 hrs to 1 hour.
The Quezon-Bicol Expressway is a 180-km expressway that will start at Pagbilao, Quezon, and will end at the Maharlika Highway in San Fernando, Camarines Sur. Pagbilao, Quezon to San Fernando, Camarines Sur, in 2 hours.