NLEX says connector to España now 80% complete

The first five-kilometer section of the North Luzon Expressway’s connector between Caloocan Interchange on C3 Road and the future España Interchange in Manila is now 80% complete, the toll road's operator NLEX Corporation said Wednesday.

In a statement, the company said the project is seen to have a “positive impact on the traffic conditions in the metro.”

“We are pleased to note that this vital infrastructure project aimed at easing travel achieves another milestone as it reaches 80% completion. This inspires optimism for the logistics sector since in a few months’ time, truckers will have a 24/7 alternative route which will enable unimpeded delivery of goods,” said NLEX president and general manager J. Luigi Bautista.

NLEX Corp. said the segment has on and off ramps and toll plazas along C3 Road and España Boulevard, crosses over the Blumentritt Station of LRT-1 and Dimasalang Bridge, and uses steel box girders for its curved and highly elevated areas.

The NLEX Connector Road project is a public-private partnership (PPP) between the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Metro Pacific-led NLEX Corp.

The company said that the DPWH has turned over 91% of the right-of-way for the España section and 83% for the Sta. Mesa section.

NLEX Corp. said the connector road project targets to serve around 35,000 motorists per day.

It is a four-lane, all-vehicle class elevated expressway. It spans eight kilometers, and terminates at the vicinity of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) in Sta. Mesa, Manila.

It passes through Tondo, Sta. Cruz, Sampaloc, and Sta. Mesa in Manila and has three interchanges located at C3 Road/5th Avenue in Caloocan, España Boulevard, and R. Magsaysay Boulevard in Manila.

The NLEX Connector project runs mostly above the alignment of the Philippine National Railways (PNR).

NLEX Corp. said the project is seen to reduce travel time from NLEX to South Luzon by at least 60% and is expected to enhance the journey between international airports such as NAIA and Clark and will stimulate development between Metro Manila and its surrounding provinces.

NLEX Corp. is a unit of the Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), the toll road arm of the Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC). — Ted Cordero/BM, GMA News