The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and private sectors forged a contract that is expected to expedite the construction of the Laguna segment of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX) on Friday, March 10.
DPWH Secretary Mark Villar revealed that the project will be constructed starting April, three months earlier than projected.
The contract was signed by officials of DPWH, MPCALA Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation, and construction giant DM Consuji, Inc. (DMCI).
It was disclosed that once the project is completed, travel through the CALAX will take only about 45 minutes from Kawit, Cavite to Biñan, Laguna.
“We plan to break ground next month, three months ahead of schedule. By the end of 2020, when we inaugurate the expressway, CALAX will be the most modern expressway in the country, with state-of-the-art operation and tolling systems and environment-friendly features,” Luigi Bautista, president and CEO of MPCALA Holdings.
Bautista further said that it will be the “standard for customer service” and “the new benchmark for expressway travel” in the country.
CALAX is a four-lane expressway from CAVITEX in Kawit, Cavite to the SLEX-Mamplasan Interchange in Biñan, Laguna, through congested residential and industrial areas in Kawit, Imus, General Trias, Dasmarinas, and Silang in Cavite, through to Sta. Rosa and Biñan in Laguna.
The project will have eight interchanges and one main toll barrier, Villar said.
CALAX is a flagship public-private partnership infrastructure project of the Philippine government and Metro Pacific Tollways. It is aimed to solve traffic in the crowded areas of Governor’s Drive, Aguinaldo Highway, and Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay Road.
Stakeholders also claimed that aside from fast and convenient travel for motorists, the expressway is expected to boost economic and investment growth in the immediate towns and cities of Cavite and Laguna.
Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation is the concessionaire of toll roads NLEX-SCTEX, CAVITEX, and the upcoming Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway project in Visayas.
10 March 2017
By Betheena Kae Unite
