SMC Will Shoulder Right-of-Way Costs to Open Link Between Skyway 3 and NLEX Connector Road Project

After completing and opening the Skyway Stage 3 road project, San Miguel Corp isn’t done yet. The conglomerate has started work on a 1.2 kilometer road that will link Skyway Stage 3 to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) Connector road project, according to President and COO Ramon Ang. 

The NLEX Connector road project is being built by the other major road infrastructure company, Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., which is a unit of Manny Pangilinan-controlled Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

In a post on Facebook, Ang said construction on the road project is underway “amid existing right-of-way challenges.”

“We have already set aside the budget for the ROW acquisition,” he said. “We will pay for it and complete this section soon to help further ease traffic in Metro Manila.” 

“Similar to our approach with Skyway 3, we’re focusing on unobstructed areas where we can make immediate progress so we don’t waste precious time while we address complex ROW issues,” Ang added. “This connection is important to achieving a truly seamless urban travel via a network of interconnected toll roads.”

Expected to measure a total of eight kilometers, the NLEX Connector Road links Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Sta. Mesa, Manila with the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 at C3 Road in Caloocan City.

According to a BusinessWorld report, workers from MPTC and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) are currently constructing the first five kilometers of the connector road from Caloocan Interchange-C3 to España. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2021.

There are currently seven entry and exit point along the Skyway Stage 3, which opened to motorists on January 15: Buendia on-ramp, Quezon Avenue on-ramp, and Balintawak off-ramp on the northbound side, and Buendia off-ramp, Plaza Dilao on-ramp, Quezon Avenue off-ramp, and Balintawak on-ramp on the southbound side.

When the NLEX connector road project is completed, travel time from NLEX to SLEX will only take about 20 minutes from the current two hours via EDSA or C5. 

SMC expressways include the South Luzon Expressway, NAIA Expressway (NAIAX), Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX), and Skyway.

The MPTC network, meanwhile, includes NLEX, Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), Manila-Cavite Expressway (MCX), and Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAEX).