MANILA, Philippines - Motorists and other travelers, particularly commuters bound for the eastern Bulacan municipalities of Plaridel, Bustos and San Rafael and farther up North can now look forward to a faster, more convenient trip with the opening this coming March of Package 1 of the Plaridel bypass road and Interchange.
The 6.87-kilometer road links up with the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX). It will allow motorists and riders to avoid the perennial heavy traffic in Sta. Rita town and nearby vicinity.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), with assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), designed and constructed the P1.57 billion Package 1 to decongest traffic and provide an alternative route for NLEX motorists in the area. It will reduce travel time by about 15 to 20 minutes.
The DPWH disclosed that the construction of the Plaridel Bypass Road is part of the projected upgrading of the Inter-Urban Highway System along the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway, which is envisioned to dramatically ease travel in the area. The entire bypass road from Burol to San Rafael covers a distance of 24.61 km and a 2.4 km access road. With the construction of Package 1 and the 7.78 km Package 2, the remaining 9.96 km of the Plaridel Bypass is being considered for implementation under the next Yen Loan Project.
DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson said that the bypass road “eloquently manifests the government’s program to improve travel for our people which, in turn, will facilitate trade and commerce, aside from socio-cultural exchange.”
For its part, Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC), builder-concessionaire of the NLEX, will provide P109 million worth of toll collection system installation. MNTC will also operate and maintain the Interchange at an estimated P23 million.
The upcoming interchange, the 16th of such facility for the 94- kilometer NLEX is now nearing completion in Balagtas town, also in Bulacan.
“With the government, through the DPWH, aggressively involved in project implementation, we can say this is another public-private sector partnership (PPP) in action,” Franco noted. The Aquino administration champions PPP as a linchpin of national development.
“As an operative principle, we, at MNTC, build toll plazas that will dovetail them with the building initiatives of the DPWH,” added Franco.