FINALLY, the deal to construct a P23.8-billion road that will connect the North and South Luzon expressways is now one step away from implementation, after Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) submitted late Monday the post-award requirements for the long-delayed project.
Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar said he received from Metro Pacific Tollways Development Corp. (MPTDC) Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan the required documents to make the notice of award for the Nlex-Slex Connector Road effective.
The deal was an unsolicited proposal that fell under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Program.
“MPTDC’s early compliance is consistent with the department’s commitment to deliver efficient infrastructure. This is a good start. It is, after all, the Duterte administration’s first PPP project,” Villar said.
The requirements submitted included construction performance security and letter of intent to lend for the funding of the project from a reputable financial institution.
“MPTDC and Manila North Tollways Corp. have complied with all the requirements stated in the Notice of Award, 10 days in advance, to jump-start the construction of this vital infrastructure that will provide seamless connection for motorists going to and from the North and South,” said Rodrigo E. Franco, who heads the tollways arm of Metro Pacific.
The 8-kilometer, four-lane elevated expressway project starts from the end of Segment 10 of Nlex at Circumferential Road 3 (C3) in Caloocan City to Polytechnic University of the Philippines campus in Santa Mesa, and connects to the common point of Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3.
The expressway project will have two interchanges at C3 Road, Caloocan City; and España, Manila.
“Once completed, the Nlex-Slex Connector Road project will decongest Metro Manila traffic and provide better access to seaports and airports. It will reduce travel time from Nlex to Slex by at least 60 percent. Instead of the usual one-and-a-half to two hours, traffic time would now be reduced to about 20 to 30 minutes,” Villar said.
Based on a tentative timetable, the facility will be opened by September 2020, as it will traverse over the Philippine National Railways’s tracks, hence requiring “minimum right-of-way acquisition and minimize, if not totally eliminate, compensation cost and adverse impacts normally associated with infrastructure-development activities.”
The project is an unsolicited proposal of proponent MPTDC subjected to Swiss Challenge in April 2016, but saw no counter offers during the July 2016 submission from prospective proponents. It was in limbo for a few years, as government officials were at odds as to how to implement this key infrastructure project.
“We are happy that infrastructure projects, such as the Nlex-Slex Connector Road, are moving at a faster pace. Our team looks forward to the timely construction and completion of the project as we aim to provide convenient travel to our motorists,” Pangilinan said.
The expressway is expected to facilitate the seamless exchange of goods and services between the two ends of the country’s capital. This would aid truck operators and freight-service firms to pick up shipped goods from the ports in Manila and deliver them to markets.
Soon, the government and the private proponent will sign the toll-concession segment of the deal.