Marcos opens CALAX segment to ease traffic congestion around Metro Manila

PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. on Monday inaugurated a segment of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX), which will cut travel time along the stretch to five from 30 minutes as the government pushes to ease congestion around Metro Manila.

The 7.88-kilometer Subsection 3, which runs from the Governor’s Drive Interchange to the Aguinaldo Interchange, is expected to decongest nearby corridors and improve connectivity in Cavite.

“This has been 10 years in the making, and as usual, the difficulty lies in the right-of-way issues that affect all road construction projects,” Mr. Marcos said in mixed English and Filipino.

He added that once the full expressway from Silang to Kawit is completed, travel time could be reduced from about two hours to 30 to 45 minutes.

The newly opened segment will be toll-free for all vehicle classes for one month. Motorists will continue to pay standard toll rates for Subsections 4 to 8, which cover the stretch from Mamplasan in Biñan, Laguna to Silang, Cavite.

“To our citizens, please use it so you can see and feel the great convenience that these large-scale projects bring,” Mr. Marcos said.

The CALAX opening forms part of the administration’s broader effort to accelerate infrastructure projects aimed at easing traffic congestion and helping cushion motorists from rising fuel costs.

In recent months, Mr. Marcos has led several infrastructure inaugurations, including segments of the Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX), the Manila-Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) C5 Link and the NAIA Expressway (NAIAX).

The President thanked the MVP Group for the CALAX project, which is being developed by MPCALA Holdings, Inc. under a concession agreement with the Department of Public Works and Highways.

MPCALA Holdings is a unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., the tollway arm of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) which is part of the First Pacific group.

MPIC is one of three key Philippine subsidiaries of First Pacific Co. Ltd., alongside Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc.

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