The Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) is on track to start the construction of two big-ticket expressway projects proposed by San Miguel Corp. later in the fourth quarter this year.
Alvin Carullo, TRB executive director, said the proponent is finalizing the engineering design of the P152 billion Southern Access Link Expressway (Sales) and the P148.30 Northern Access Link Expressway (NALEX).
“Maybe within the year or the last quarter of 2024 these projects will start construction,” he said in a text message.
The proposed P152.39 billion SALEX is a 40.65-km elevated expressway comprising of the Shoreline Expressway and three Metro Manila Skyway Stage (MMSS3) Extensions, namely the C3-R10 Extension, Quirino Extension, and Buendia Extension.
The P148.30 billion NALEX, on the other hand, consists of two phases.
NALEX, Phase 1 is a proposed 136.4-kilometer expressway envisioned to provide connectivity between the Metro/Mega Manila, the New Manila International Airport (NMIA) and Central Luzon as an extension of the Metro Manila Skyway-Stage 3 at Balintawak. NALEX, Phase 2 is a demand-driven expansion from Masantol, Pampanga to Tarlac City.
SMC SLEX Inc., a tollway unit of San Miguel, is building the 66.74-kilometer SLEX Toll Road 4 that would connect Sto. Tomas, Batangas to Lucena City in Quezon province .
The P26.1-billion project is expected to be completed by 2026. TR4 is a part of SLTC’s 30-year concession lasting until 2036.
The toll road will shorten travel time from Sto. Tomas to Barangay Mayao in Lucena from the usual three hours to 45 minutes.
In addition, San Miguel last year signed a memorandum of agreement with Metro Pacific Investments Corp. to jointly undertake the construction, operation and maintenance of the 87.96-kilometer Cavite-Batangas Expressway and Nasugbu-Bauan Expressway.
SMC’s expressways includes the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX), the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR), South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), the Skyway System and the NAIA Expressway (NAIAX).
