The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) targets to complete the Cavite Laguna Expressway (Calax) Silang (Aguinaldo) Interchange by May or June.
This developed after a local court in Tagaytay City lifted the suspension of a writ of possession on the remaining 15,650 square meters of land needed to finish the tolled highway project.
Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan told reporters that in two to three months the Calax Silang (Aguinaldo) interchange will be completed after months of delay due to right-of-way issues. The project was supposed to have been completed in December last year.
Bonoan said the DPWH already secured a writ of possession on the remaining 15,650 square meters of land owned by a private company.
In an order dated February 23, Presiding Judge Michael Maranan of Branch 134 of the Tagaytay City Regional Trial Court lifted the “holding in abeyance the implementation of the issued writ of possession” dated March 4, 2022.
Maranan also directed the branch sheriff to implement the writ of possession without delay.
“As prayed for and as agreed upon by the parties, the defendant [Uneco Land Corp] is given a period of 10 days before the actual implementation of the writ to remove , transfer, or relocate the horses, farm tools, and equipment and other things not otherwise considered as part of the building or structure that may be found in the subject property,” Maranan added.
The undelivered right of way (ROW) is a critical part to the completion of the construction of the CALAX Silang (Aguinaldo) Interchange
The ROW issues have prevented continuous works, including construction of drainage and bridge, excavation and roadway earthworks, and installation of fence and coco net on the roadway.
“They [MPACALA Holdings Inc.] can now proceed with the construction,” he added.
Bonoan also committed to fast track the delivery of ROW for the remaining segments of the CALAX Project this year.
“I was able to talk to the Department of Budget and Management and they assured me that they will release the funds necessary for the acquisition of right-of-way for CALAX,” he said.
The DPWH chief said the DBM budgeted P2 billion for CALAX right-of-way this year.
Subsection 4 or the Silang (Aguinaldo) segment remains only 65 percent complete although more than 57 percent of the CALAX project has been already done.
Once completed, the CALAX will connect to the busiest highway in Cavite—the Aguinaldo Highway—and help decongest major thoroughfares of this province and Laguna. The interchange will serve more motorists, including the 298,000 Silang residents, given the reduced traffic situation.
Eventually, CALAX will expand to 45 kilometers and will connect to the CAVITEX. At present, its operational segments stretch from Mamplasan in Binan, with interchanges at the Laguna Technopark, Laguna Boulevard, Santa Rosa-Tagaytay Road, up to Silang East Interchange.
MPCALA Holdings Inc. is a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), the toll road development arm of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC).
MPTC is the biggest toll road developer and operator in the Philippines. Aside from CALAX and CAVITEX, it also holds the concession rights for North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), NLEX Connector Road, Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), and Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX) in Cebu.
