MANILA, Philippines — Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar commended yesterday the DPWH Task Force responsible for speeding up the road right-of-way (ROW) acquisition for the soon to be opened Skyway Stage 3 project.
“We are on the final stage of the Skyway Stage 3 project that will link the southern and northern Metro Manila by connecting SLEX and NLEX before the end of the year,” Villar said.
“This would not be possible if not for the commitment of the DPWH ROW Task Force that worked relentlessly with concessionaire CITRA Central Expressway Corp.,” he added.
Villar said ROW acquisition is the most common cause of project delay, especially under the public-private partnership.
Prior to Villar’s issuance of a department order for the ROW acquisition, work on the Skyway Stage 3 was sluggish at 8.64 percent almost three years after the project started in 2015.
“With our improved system, the acquired ROW increased to 95 percent in 31 months,” Villar said.
He was instrumental in facilitating the ROW acquisition, particularly with the removal and relocation of the facilities of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and Manila Electric Co.
As of September, 40 out of 47 service utilities of the NGCP were removed. For Meralco, 1,090 out of 1,312 affected utilities were relocated.
A fifth segment of the Skyway Stage 3 project was established from Balintawak Cloverleaf to connect it to the NLEX footbridge, to avoid traffic congestion along A. Bonifacio street and EDSA.