Efficient mass transport within reach, vows DoTr

The Department of Transportation (DoTr), through a combination of short- and long-term transportation projects, envisions local roads to be car-free, where people patronize an efficient mass transportation system to go about their daily lives.

“I want to emphasize the long-term goal of our transport infrastructure projects, such as ongoing construction of railway systems, in providing permanent solutions to the traffic problem in the metropolis,” Transportation Secretary Jaime J. Bautista said during a recent forum.

“Our flagship road and rail infrastructures aim to alleviate traffic by offering comfortable, efficient, and accessible public transport as a better alternative to private vehicle owners, thus lowering the number of road users,” Bautista added.

Among the transportation department’s big-ticket infrastructure projects include the MRT-7, LRT-1 Cavite Extension, Metro Manila Subway, North-South Commuter Railway System, Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program, improvement of the EDSA Busway, and EDSA Greenways Project.

The transport chief urged inter-agency coordination to help speed up the completion of these projects.

Likewise, Bautista emphasized that road safety, driver discipline, and the use of non-motorized vehicles will also help promote order on the road and ensure efficient movement of vehicles.

Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan pointed out that decongestion plans to ease the daily gridlock include expansion and upgrading of transportation infrastructure including the construction of new roads and bridges.

According to Bonoan, the traffic decongestion program is one of the key strategic infrastructure programs of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) aligned with the 2023-2028 Philippine Development Plan.

Urgent completion sought

Completing the main line of the 18-kilometer Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 has reduced travel time from Buendia to Balintawak from 2 hours to 15-20 minutes.

The Tomas Claudio — Polytechnic University of the Philippines Sta. Mesa Section is ongoing and out of the target 28 ramps, 22 are completed, three are ongoing and the other three ramps are under the planning stage.

Another project that will decongest and bypass EDSA is the 7.7-kilometer NLEX-SLEX Connector Road. This elevated expressway mostly traversing along the PNR rail track from Caloocan to Plaza Dilao in Manila will reduce travel time from SLEX to NLEX from 2 hours to 20 minutes.

The project is already 95 percent complete and now has three interchanges located on C3 Road/5th Avenue in Caloocan, and España and Magsaysay Boulevard in Manila.

Targeted to be fully completed this year, the NLEX-SLEX Connector Road Project will bring great comfort to many motorists once fully operational including its link to the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 in Sta. Mesa, Manila.

Another landmark project is the 32-kilometer Southeast Metro Manila Expressway (C6 Expressway, phase 1) which will reduce travel time from Bicutan to Batasan from 2 hours to 30 minutes. Right-of-way acquisition is ongoing.

The C5 South Link Expressway will reduce travel time from R-1 Expressway to SLEX/C5 from 40 minutes to 10 minutes. The Merville to C5/SLEX and E. Rodriguez to Merville Sections are operational.

The Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project —Phase I involves the construction of a 51-kilometer road network along Laguna Lakeshore from Calamba to Bicutan will cater to the increasing traffic volume in the southern corridor of Metro Manila.

Detailed engineering design for the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project — Phase I is 97 percent complete. Loan for the construction of the project is underway with the Asian Development Bank.

The 44-kilometer Cavite-Laguna Expressway is expected to reduce travel time from CAVITEX in Kawit to SLEX Mamplasan in Laguna from 2 hours to 35 minutes. The 17.4 kilometers from SLEX Mamplasan to Silang-Aguinaldo Interchange is already operational, while the remaining sections will be completed next year.

Bridge constructions underway

DPWH is also prioritizing the construction of new bridges crossing the Pasig River and Manggahan Floodway. This will provide alternative linkages between major thoroughfares and increase the number of usable roadways that would decongest traffic in EDSA and other major roads in Metro Manila.

Three bridges have been completed namely Binondo-Intramuros Bridge; BGC-Ortigas Center Link Road Project; and Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge.

The design and build contracts for the other three bridges are ongoing and civil works are to start this year. Civil works for the North & South Harbor Bridge and Palanca-Villegas Bridge crossing Pasig River are targeted to start by the end of this year or early part of next year while construction of Eastbank-Westbank Bridge 2 crossing Manggahan Floodway is set to commence in September 2024.