P175-M toll plaza between SCTEX, TPLEX to be built

ANGELES CITY , Philippines  â€“ The state-owned Bases Conversion Development Authority, along with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), plans to construct a P175-million permanent toll plaza between the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) and the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) for smoother traffic.

“The toll plaza will provide a seamless interconnection between the SCTEX and TPLEX that will result in faster travel time and convenience to the motorists,” BCDA president and chief executive officer Arnel Paciano Casanova. BCDA owns and operates SCTEX.

Casanova said Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson has agreed to start soonest the construction of the Tarlac toll plaza, which will cost P175 million.

“The BCDA will shoulder the cost of the toll plaza’s detailed design, traffic management and installation of the Toll Collection System (TCS) amounting to P25 million. The DPWH, on the other hand, will fund the civil works at a cost of P150 million, the bulk of which involves the construction of the toll plaza,” he told members of the Capampangans in Media Inc. (CAMI) here on Saturday. 

BCDA project manager for SCTEX services Joshua Bingcang said the construction of the permanent toll plaza will take about six months “assuming favorable construction weather conditions.”

Bingcang said the new toll plaza will have seven toll lanes, of which four lanes will cater to motorists from the SCTEX entering the TPLEX, and the remaining three lanes for motorists from the TPLEX entering the SCTEX.

He said the two toll lanes will be reversible, allowing additional lanes to address the queuing of vehicles during unusually high traffic volume.

While the Tarlac toll plaza has yet to be constructed, Casanova said plans are underway to address the queuing of vehicles caused by the present set-up.  

“We are exploring the interconnection project with both the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC), concession holder of the NLEX, and the Private Infrastructure Development Corp. (PIDC), concession holder of the TPLEX,” he said.

In the TPLEX, for instance, Casanova said the interconnection plan would allow motorists exiting the SCTEX and entering TPLEX to pay their exit toll and at the same time get their entry ticket at the TPLEX central toll plaza and vice versa.

“This would considerably reduce toll transaction time and allow for faster travel time as motorists will only stop at one toll plaza both to pay their exit toll as they exit the SCTEX and get their entrance toll ticket as they enter the TPLEX,” he said.                 – With Ric Sapnu