Post anything related to the North Luzon Expressway here!!

let's post pics later, i wanna talk about it expanding. will it be expanding soon?i hope so

they're extending and expanding it right now.

The expansion/extension is reportedly on track and is said to be finished by year end...

Here's an image from the thread in the Transportation forum:
http://www.philtourism.com/bigimages/pv_hi-way.jpg

I don't know which is which in the following. Either NLEX/SLEX:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid29/p46ab78efe9f9b43b4065e362762fbb44/fd5d923d.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid29/p0b8d0394066db41e1459f97c732a832e/fd5d927e.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid29/pab81aa82f518fb99720ae600266b55d4/fd5d9318.jpg

thanks for the photos absent-minded. (cud u tell us ur first name pls?). i guess only the first photo is NLEX. travel is a breeze up north...expecially at night time, when there's no traffic.

Originally posted by Francis20

thanks for the photos absent-minded. (cud u tell us ur first name pls?). i guess only the first photo is NLEX. travel is a breeze up north...expecially at night time, when there's no traffic.

hahaha...! Lance...

I've never actually been through this one (or at least not that I remember of)... only the SLEX. And last few times I was on it, traffic was moving well too... doesn't build up and slow to a stop like EDSA...

yay, i also find it weirdo calling you absent, lance:)

btw, i think the top two pictures are NLEX...i took those pics and i cant remember myself.

i always pass that long viaduct, i think it's called Candaba. it's very long.. i think it's longer than San Juanico.

nice. lance, taga qc ka lan pala. astig.

Here are some details: (taken from http://www.wcorridor.com/InfraLinks/northluzon_tollway.htm)

North Luzon Tollways Project


Project Description:
Phase I US$ 373 M
Rehabilitation and expansion of 84 km of existing NLE plus 8 km stretch of green field expressway around Tipo-Subic (built in 1996)

Phase II US$ 400 M
Construction of 22 km circumferential road connecting current C-5 expressway with NLE
Target construction date - June2002 to July 2003

Phase III US$ 550 M
Construction of 57 km Subic arm or NLE to SBMA area, and segment of C-5 (McArthur to Letre)
Target construction date - January 2003 to Jul 2004



Status/Remarks
*Advance construction works that started in December 1999 was completed in May 2001.

Last Feb. 11, 2003 , MNTC has issued Construction Notice to Proceed (CNTP) l to the contractor Leighton Contractors of Asia Ltd. The CNTP covers Phase 1 of the NLTP for the rehabilitation, expansion and upgrading of the existing 84 kms. North Luzon Expressway.

The issuance of the CNTP signals the start of major construction works which are programmed for completion by 2005.

Leighton Contractors Asia Ltd. has issued notice to the public on the disruption to traffic in the following locations due to start pf the construction activities to rehabilitate the tollroad:

-San Simon to San Fernando - commencement of work - 26 Feb. 2003

- San Fernando to Sta Ines - anticipated commencement - 3 March 2003

And here is a very informative current news update:

North Luzon Expressway fully operational by yearend

The new North Luzon Expressway (NLE) is more than 60 percent completed and motorists can expect to enjoy its full use by the end of the year.


This was announced by Jose P. De Jesus, president and chief executive officer of Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC), the company behind the new NLE, who said that out of the total 437 lane-kilometers to be constructed or rehabilitated, about 174 lane-kilometers are now in use. The mainline pavement, interchanges and flyovers will be completed by July 2004, while all toll plazas will be completed by August 2004.

De Jesus made the announcement during a recent meeting with the Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PamCham) where he was the guest of honor and speaker.

De Jesus stressed that "the new NLE’s pavement has been designed and built to last for 30 years. But it is not just a newly paved road. It is a world-class and state-of-the-art expressway system which all of us can be proud of – the first and the only one of its kind in the Philippines."

The new NLE will have: eight lanes (both ways) of high quality asphalt covered pavement for the first 23 kilometers; six lanes (both ways) of the same quality road until Sta. Rita; two lanes (both ways) of the same quality road from Sta. Rita all the way to San Fernando, Angeles and Mabalacat; a brand new interchange in Mexico to defuse the traffic along San Fernando; a brand new interchange with a dedicated flyover to Dau proper to maximize the traffic flow northward and do away with the unsafe traffic light in the middle of the expressway; and a brand new interchange in Marilao, Bulacan to ease the traffic along MacArthur Highway.

In addition, to ensure long term safety, some of the bridges have been widened, and all have been reinforced and strengthened.

The MNTC chief also said that "the toll plazas have been widened to accommodate as much as 16 vehicles at any given time to avoid long waiting time. And there will be lanes dedicated exclusively to electronic card system users."

________________

Very good news, indeed...:cool:

yup... have they already started Phase II and III or just finishing up with Phase I?

Originally posted by absent-minded

yup... have they already started Phase II and III or just finishing up with Phase I?

I'm not completely sure, but i think they are working on Phase II and III right now...soon to be finished.

wow thats good news indeed for norther luzon motorists, i cant wait to use the expanded and rehabilitated nlex tbis coming december guys!!!

Originally posted by SKYLINEPIGEON

wow thats good news indeed for norther luzon motorists, i cant wait to use the expanded and rehabilitated nlex tbis coming december guys!!!

me too...just for the heck of going through NLEX, i wanna go to Subic and Clark:D

so NLEX will be indeed going through Clark and Subic. so that Clark-Subic expressway will be part of it?:?

Ops...so there IS a "north" part with the south...hehehe ;)

Anyone have a map of the entire project?

Ops...so there IS a "north" part with the south...hehehe ;)

Anyone have a map of the entire project?

i dont have a map right now, but when i go back to belgium i might find one for you.



it didnt look lik 60 percent done to me, but the newly paved roads are great. we were running 110km/h with ease

great news! this would be good for the motorist and investors! i remember the NLEX few years ago, it was like driving in the moon, pathholes everywhere =(

hahaha... driving in the moon.

sounds like its a lot better now as per Renell's experience. anyone take the NLEX this holy week?? how was it? hope they'll complete phase III by the end of the year....

yeah..it was very bad back then, like year 1999 to 2000. based from the photos, looks like they are well paved now, even edsa looks well paved with painted dividing lanes =)

Any new updates on the improvement of NLEX. Phase III will be finished by the end of the year, right?

actually, its a bit wonderful to note how most of u in this forum become very well updated with the latest infra projects even if ur presently staying abroad, in fact, most of my kababayans here dont realy care so much about it, & u know why.... i guess our country has realy gone too far in politicizing everything.... oh well.... nway, speaking of NLEX, as far as iv read on the news, the 2nd & 3rd phases are stil about to start, as u all know, even the 1st phase's construction started only last yr w/c is alrdy very late of the target date. & 1 primary reason 4 all this is: settling the right of way problems, specialy on the 2nd & 3rd phase, where the consortium who was tasked to build them were stil having an extremely difficult time dealing w/ the settlers & landowners affected.... hay, ganyan talaga d2... plus not to mention the very rampant red tape-u know....securing lots of unnecessary signature approvals from diff. govt agencies (THE HECK???!!!) & finally, may funding problem pa rin coz as the peso continues to depreciate, the construction expenses continues to rise naman & not until they can finaly agree as to when the construction of the remaining phases shal commence, im afraid they'll end up just talking bout numbers, & worse, shelve the whole project, just like what hapend to skyway. but all is not lost, i think w/ d level of confidence the foreign investors & CREDITORS have w/ gloria & her technocrats, then our dream of having world class roads in MM will now materialize.....k!

mysaong03
thanks for sharing that update. i agree with you, i hope GMA would get reelected and hopefully the economy would get better and more infrastructure projects on the way!

hahaha... you should see how deep the waters they have to wade in Vancouver are. they just shelved a new Skytrain/LRT/MRT proposal because it was turned down by the public through a vote that was held the other night! I mean, how bad can a project like that be??? the province owned bus system here is total CRAP! if you say Manila's Bus and Jeep transpo services suck, you should see how bad it is here. it takes nearly 2 hours to go somewhere less than 6km away!! with no traffic!!!

anyway, enough of that... the 2nd and 3rd phases of the NLEX sound good. it should add another 77km (?) to it... strengthens the Mega Manila project even more. maybe it's just me (or the elections), but all our infra projects seem to be going at a faster rate now. just hope that it gets past the votes and that GMA can continue pushing through with the creation and upgrading of these vital facilities. we are slowly but surely catching up to Thailand and Malaysia... I want to see some more big infra projects in the Mindanao/Viasayas areas though...

Thanks for the update, mysaong.:) Isnt it confirmed that it will be all finished by the end of this year?

from what i've read, it is. but there is still a lot to be done. none of the interchanges i've passed by (Balintawak-San Fernando) have none of the new exits and entrances fully operational. there still seems a lot to be done. i say same month next year all will be done. i added 4 months there given the time Filipinos work, and how our government works. :D

Travel on North Luzon Expressway improves
Posted: 11:20 PM (Manila Time) | Apr. 21, 2004
Inquirer News Service


Easy riders

MOTORISTS using the North Luzon Expressway will notice that it takes less time now to travel from Balintawak to Sta. Ines, Pampanga, a good 84-kilometer stretch. Gone, too, are the bumps and potholes.

At the rate work is progressing, we can look forward to the early completion of the project. Developers predict that, by July, the main line roadwork between Balintawak and Sta. Ines would be opened to the public.

And they foresee that the entire project would be completed in 4-5 months, ahead of the February 2005 schedule. The developers add they use only high-quality asphalt for the pavement.

Renato Banares, senior vice president for program management of the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) says:

"Now in use are 336 out of the total 433 km main thoroughfare. Rehabilitation and expansion of this 30-year-old obsolete highway includes construction of new interchanges, flyovers and toll plazas... MNTC will (also) provide modern amenities... such as electronic message signboards, emergency call boxes, fiber optic communications and specialized cameras. With the completion of the project, the obsolete thoroughfare will have the best toll road system in the country."

Agencies in charge of the NLEX development are the Philippine National Construction Corporation, Leighton Contractors, MNTC, Toll Regulatory Board and Department of Public Works and Highways.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
great news for NLEX!! the completion of phase I's rehab should kick off the construction of the final legs of the tollway. mysaong03 was right. the second and third phases should add up about 22km and 57km respectively for a total of around 79 new kilometres summing up with the existing phase I for a total of around 163km. wow...! wonder how long the rest will take. at least they were able to fast track the rehab of phase I... hehehe...

hm.. sounds good eh? but the other side of the story is that toll fees will go sky high. but i guess that's the price of world-class roads

At Least Theres Some Improvement We Can See Nowadays, One Year Ago Travelling In Nlex Was Horrible

well for us it's easy to say, but for local folks it's gonna be damn expensive. i heard the prices will rise 200%

Sweet...i just love this quote "Gone, too, are the bumps and potholes":okay:

84km is quite long actually. Much better than a few years ago. See, NLEX is slowly making its way through northern Luzon. And there will be an additional kilometers of highway as Subic-Clark highway is currently u/c.

I bet as our country progresses (as slowly as that my be) projects like these will take place faster.

Now for some not so good news....

P20-B Subic-Clark-Tarlac road project construction hits a snag
By BERNIE CAHILES-MAGKILAT

Construction of the R20 billion SubicClark-Tarlac Expressway Project (SCTEP) has been delayed for about a month now as the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) is still negotiating with the most qualified bidder to lower its cost to meet the budgetary allocation for the project.


BCDA president and chief executive officer Rufo Colayco said the budget allocation for the Clark-Tarlac was only R8 billion while the Clark-Subic portion costs R12 billion for a total of P20 billion financing from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

“We have to reduce the cost without compromising the functionality of the road and the government not shelling out additional counterpart funds,” Colayco said. The government has 15 percent counterpart financing while JBIC extended $374 million or 85 percent of the entire financing.

Colayco said the consortium of MTI, Hazama-Taisei-Nippon (Hazama Corp, Taisei Corp. and Nippon Steel Corp.) for the Subic-Clark portion (Package 2) offered the lowest bid of P11 billion among three bidders. But the amount was 40 percent higher than the budgetary allocation from the JBIC loan.

This means the government has to shell additional counterpart fund for the project if the winning consortium’s cost estimates will be followed.

“We are negotiating with the lowest bidder to lower its cost,” Colayco said noting that construction for Package 1 was supposed to kick off last March 30. He was, however, optimistic the Japanese consortium will give in to their request.

Colayco also admitted that their budget allocation was already overtaken by events leading to the increased prices of construction materials like cement, steel and asphalt because of the strong demand from China. This was also compounded by the peso depreciation against the dollar.

Downgrading the cost of the project would mean sacrificing the strength of the expressway or reduction of some structures in the original plan.

On the other hand, Colayco said, the JBIC guidelines for projects it funded are very strict.

“The JBIC guidelines are very strict. JBIC does not compromise the functionality of the road and we are also adamant to that,” he said.

The MTI-Hazama-Taisei-Nippon consortium has not yet been declared a winning bidder for Package 2 but has been recognized as a qualified contractor after beating two other bidders MTI (Maeda Corp., Toyo Construction Co. Ltd. and IshikawaHarima Heavy Industries Co. Ltd.) and the consortium of KOJM (Kajima Corp., Obayashi Corp., JFE Engineering Corp. and Mitsubsishi Heavy Industries Ltd.)

more...

BCDA effort to lower P11-B bid delays Subic-Clark-Tarlac expressway project
By Marianne V. Go
The Philippine Star 04/23/2004

The construction of the first phase of the P18.74-billion Subic-Clark-Tarlac expressway project (SCTEP) has been delayed by efforts of the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) to lower the P11-billion bid price submitted by Japanese contractor Hazama-Taisei-Nippon Steel Group.

The first phase of the SCTEP comprises of 44-kilometer, four-lane superhighway that would connect Clark to Tarlac.

Construction was originally scheduled to begin last February or early March, with completion targeted by 2006.

The Hazama-Taisei-Nippon Group had submitted the lowest bid out of the three pre-qualified Japanese joint venture bidders. The two other bidders were the MTI group and the KOJM join venture.

The Hazama-Taisei-Nippon joint venture is made up of Hazama Corp. Taisei Corp. and Nippon Steel Corp.

The Philippine government received an overseas development assistance (ODA) loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) amounting to ¥41.931 million, which represents 85 percent of the total package cost of the 94.5-km tollway. The remaining 15 percent will have to be counterfunded by the BCDA.

According to BCDA president and chief executive officer Rufo Colayco, they are still trying to negotiate with the Hazama-Taisei-Nippon group to bring down its bid price to match the P8-billion budget allocated for the first phase of the SCTEP.

"We’re still negotiating, but we’re getting there," Colayco said.

Colayco acknowledged construction cost that has been affected by the construction boom in China.

China’s demand for steel, cement, asphalt and other construction materials has had a global impact, raising the cost of such materials.

Hence, Colayco cannot yet definitely say when construction of the first phase of the SCTEP would begin.

Once the SCTEP is completed, travel time between Subic and Clark and be shortened to 30 minutes compared to the present two-hour drive.

well this is not surprising news. the government does not have a lot of money, so they will delay it for a couple of months just to get a better price for it's projects

hmm...i hope the project would push tru though and hope they stick with the original plans, they should think of the long run effect!

well if you think in the government's side, a short delay in the beginning would be better than a NAIA3-type delay. just like a road rehabilitation project, it would be problems at first, but everyone would benefit from it in the end

yeah... I agree with Renell's last post... I hate what's gone wrong with NAIA 3.

anyway, even if they're able to haggle the price down to somewhere closer to P8B, there's always the JBIC's regulations and standards that will hopefully be able to control the quality of the project - even if it has to be delayed. I'm optimistic they'll kick the porject of by early may or at least june...

i still haven't heard any news whether this expressway will connect to NLEX. im hoping it will, for the expressways in the country need to start becoming more complex.

Well NAIA 3 was a different story. It was built by the private sector supported by the government. These highways however, are mainly developed the government. So yes it is more or less "ok" that they delay the project to seek the best bid. And afterwards, they are sure to get the project rolling in good pace unlike NAIA 3

its always like that government has no counter funds for projects financed by multi lateral or international finanacial institutionsn like adb, imf etc etc so wht happen projects get shelved, axed, terminated postponed

JBIC ready to finance road extension to La Union
By BERNIE CAHILES-MAGKILAT

Even before the start of the construction the 94.5-kilometer SubicClark-Tarlac expressway, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) is granting P18 billion loans to extend the expressway by another 90-kilometer stretch road all the way to Rosario town in La Union.


This was revealed by Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) chairman Felicito Payumo at the sidelines of the groundbreaking of the freeport facility late last week.

According to Payumo, the proposed road would shorten the travel time from Tarlac to La Union to one and a half-hours from the current four hours. The feasibility study for the project has been completed by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Payumo said the construction of the road extension would benefit the Baguio City Special Economic Zone particularly the American-owned Texas Instruments of the Philippines, the country’s biggest exporter.

Earlier, JBIC extended $375 million loan for the Subic-Clark-Tarlac expressway and another $215 million for the Subic port development project.

Japan Embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission Minister Akio Egawa said at the groundbreaking of the Subic port project that the Japanese are willing to extend assistance to such projects that has massive socio-development component.

"The massive potential of this project to contribute to the socio-economic development of so many people in this part of the country is one of the main reasons the Japanese government financed the project," he said.

Egawa cited the port project to serve as the gateway and transshipment hub to and from the Asia Pacific region.

JBIC loans carried a preferential interest rate of 0.95 percent per annum payable in 40 years with a 10year grace period. The project should have a Japanese content requirement of 50 percent.

In the case of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac expressway, the first section covering the Subic-Clark covers 50.5 kilometer road while the second section covers the Clark-Tarlac section measuring 44 kilometers long.

It involves the construction of three major bridges; 14 interchanges, 36 bridges, 218 culverts, 13 overpasses and 51 underpasses.

The Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) has awarded the project to a consortium composed of Hazama Corp., Taisei Corp., and Nippon Steel Corp.

Construction, however, of the expressway has been delayed for a month.

BCDA president and chief executive officer Rufo Colayco was still negotiating with the Japanese consortium to lower its P11-billion bid as this was 40 percent above the government budget.


-----------------------

Very good news! We asked for some, they give us more!!:D hehe..more highways = better economic prospects for outlaying areas.

and also faster travel time to the north. would be cool if we'd be able to drive up to Vigan using expressways alone. we traveled to Italy and Spain from Belgium using only expressways

Luzon could be linked from point to point by expressway sometime in the future...it will take lots of time. Then you could take a ferry to other islands which all have expressways of their own. hehehe, thats when we become a developed country;)

Luzon could be linked from point to point by expressway sometime in the future...it will take lots of time. Then you could take a ferry to other islands which all have expressways of their own. hehehe, thats when we become a developed country;)
nice eh. i wanna be there when it happens. malaysia was able to do it and i admire them for that. i just hope we and the other asean countries can follow. :D

The alternative to NLEX, MacArthur Highway, these pictures are pretty old and were taken at the Pampanga part. These pictures are courtesy of Tom Utts:

1972:
http://zcap.freeyellow.com/Street13a.jpg http://zcap.freeyellow.com/Jeeps13.jpg
http://zcap.freeyellow.com/Flood72/sheer2d.jpg

1984:
http://zcap.freeyellow.com/street13d.jpg

galing! old pics..yet pretty.

Its not really a highway in international standards...but in Philippine standards, yup sure is!:D

well the philippine definition of highway is different from what i'd usually think. my definition of highway is what they call in MM, expressway

A highway need not be 4 lane asphalted, no traffic. A highway can be a broad avenue, a business road, etc. As long as it's a major route that connects multiple cities, it's a highway. California Highway One passes through my town here and it's almost like the pictures above (without the flooding, though it's been known to happen in Santa Cruz every 50 years or so).

Boybaha has a point, El Camino Real (California Highway 82) is near our apartment in Sunnyvale and it goes from San Jose to San Francisco, it's a pretty long highway and it passes through towns just like the Angeles section of the MacArthur Highway.

i don't think MacArthur highway is always two-lane. in built-up areas, it becomes 4 lane, but the 2 extra are mostly occupied by buses and jeepney loading or unloading people

Yup, from the looks of it, it is a 4 lane highway.

a 4-lane highway in certain areas. but mostly it is a 2-lane highway, with the cars going northbound using the southbound lane to overtake slow tricycles or slow-ass trucks

I went to Pampanga yesterday.. and I took some pictures of the expressway...

4 lane highway
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/p8444602c952b3670c8fd08de3aef4824/f890e669.jpg

San Fernando toll gate, under construction
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/p9353bc954affbc59bbfe13ec2740a576/f890f423.jpg

One of the machines installed in the toll gates.. seems like has ticket feeder..
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/p55beb5263384500de0a2840b68661eff/f890e68f.jpg

Bocaue tollgate underconstruction (10-20 lanes i think)... this is too big.. is it that the old Balintawak toll gate will be replaced?
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/pf85d089695319664b8ccec259396a330/f890e689.jpg

Meycauayan toll gate under construction
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/pd4de62942d5d6d4398cfd52203f31123/f890e65b.jpg

great pics!!! never been on the old NLEX, but it does seem to look much better after improvements than it would've used to for its age....! very world-class indeed....!!! is all of it four lanes? that would be great, but it probably isn't right? don't think we'd need all that space right now....

hope investments will start pouring in - especially to northern luzon, for its huge progress - after GMA is proclaimed winner... the economy can't stay like this for too long.... almost nothing moving at all right now.... hopefully, no uprisings or coups or anything of that sort will occur after whoever wins wins....

@pau, oddly enough, i remember seeing a Balintawak interchange that big too, then i saw another one in Bocaue...

and i don't really think bocaue needs that many toll gates especially the roads that lead to the station aren't really that wide. just 2 lane roads. one-way on each side.

unless maybe they plan of widening those roads, it would make more sense. i doubt it though coz there are already houses beside those roads.

btw. you can reach my place in bulacan via bocaue exit. ;)

Nice!! i like...:okay: Aspalt looks smooth, highway is wide, toll gates are simple but attractive...nice job. cannot wait till it is fully completed.

well.. that long toll gate plaza that I shot in Bocaue is not the Bocaue Exit toll gate.... It seems to me that it is a Toll gate plaza similar to what is in Balintawak currently....

I'm not sure if they are going to demolish that old Toll gate plaza.....

well... from Balintawak to Sta. Rita Exit, it is 4 lanes... the rest are mostly in two lanes and some are still under construction... even that long bridge between Bulacan and Pampanga...

so Balintawak to Sta. Rita (38.4km, according to PNCC's site) is 4-lanes going each direction and the rest (around another 40km) 4-lanes with two for each southbound and northbound, right? cool...

I came across an old Manila Bulletin (way back Nov 2003) today and saw two renderings - one of the Balintawak toll plaza and another one somewhere with two rotondas in the interchange (I'll go and check tomorrow). the balintawak toll plaza was huge - 16 gates, according to the caption. pretty much as big as that one pau_p1 posted.

@pau_p1 - in that second to the last pic, has the road already been poured with asphalt (around the toll plaza)? looks a bit uneven, but I can't tell if it's just mud as in the last shot.... the first pics look real good... imo, as good as any expressway should be. btw, how was the road? this guy here (http://www.inq7.net/lif/2004/apr/29/lif_5-1.htm) says it's a bit "wavy" when you switch lanes and stuff - unlike many other people who've been impressed with the upgrades. is there still much traffic at this stage of the construction? how fast were you able to go? :)

here are basically similar pictures

The vending machine:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/p869cca8efea7766c532875e0b2c4d892/f8801d2f.jpg

Two lanes:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/pc300f31094caee07986a6e6d1f5b0b42/f8801d0d.jpg

Three lanes:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/pdb1f69469981bd52e21f066ff442d533/f8801cc9.jpg

Four lanes:
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid118/pf8ba284a16f003f7333759edfb1f3066/f8801c2c.jpg

Candaba south has already been stripped bare of the asphalt and the conditions there are absolutely the worst but the North section has already been rehabilitated, at least that was told, I was asleep, I didn't have first-hand knowledge, haha. On the southbound part of the expressway, the only traffic I experienced was at the on-ramp in San Fernando and the line at the men's room at Petron. All-in-all, the expressway is outstanding and if you've got a powerful vehicle, you can really go very fast, but once the expressway is done, I think everyone will have to abide by the 100/60 kph rule.

nice...!! the gov't should actually think about painting lines on all roads at least two lanes wide. I mean, parts of EDSA and Quezon Ave. have them but they just suddenly disappear and then reappear every now and then. it seems as if painting roads is a waste of paint and money to the gov't. the swerving and siksikan of the cars along these highways are one of the major factors that cause traffic. as are potholes and worn out concrete that pop up all over EDSA and Araneta. everyone has to slow down or swerve to avoid them and that is the main reason why these huge arteries are always so slow moving... I wonder how much it would cost to cover up EDSA with asphalt... long overdue already...

lol, same goes for the SLEX extension into manila.

NLEX, like SLEX, is now very smooth. before, going 100kmh meant it would be bumpy, and noisy. now 110kmh is a smooth ride in a starex

lol, same goes for the SLEX extension into manila.

what do you mean....?

has the SLEX been rehabilitated already? I've never been the entire length, but most of the parts I've been on seem to be smooth and quite new - mostly asphalted, I think. when did it go through rehab/upgrading?

no the part from Buendia to Quirino, it's just horrible.

oh... hehehe... where's quirino? is that north or south of buendia?? the NLEX goes to tagatay, right? or is that some other expressway? we were supposed to go for lunch there today, but didn't push through...

fyi: the south luzon tollway officially starts from the Alabang interchange all the way to Calamba exit...

while the stretch from Magallanes interchange all the way to Quirino Ave. is named Pres. Osmena Highway (formerly the South Super Highway)

oh... so the SLEX is still in good shape...?

the Manila-Cavite Coastal Road goes up to Tagaytay. NLEX goes up north, Tagaytay is in the South:D :laughs:

apiong said it right. but i have a question. how about the stretch from Magallanes interchange to Alabang? what is that called?

I thought the entire stretch from Magallanes to Alabang was the South Superhighway.

Isn't the Magallanes to Alabang section part of the Skyway jursidiction, including the at-grade highway? There's even a sign in Magallanes saying "You are now entering the Metro Manila Skyway, a project of Citra & PNCC, etc."

I read that it is a part of Skyway.

oh right. ironic that it is part of skyway when most of the Bicutan and Sucat stretch has no skyway at all right now:D

anyways, here are some pics i took in NLEX

the new San Simon interchange
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid119/p6c78ce26b99f38520342af9c5d08d1c0/f87821c3.jpg

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid119/p84ac62388038bef26d1f326edee66f2c/f87821c7.jpg

one last pic i forgot to post http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid119/pb02c19017234b6470c98476474fde717/f87821bf.jpg

nice... I like the modern, curved design of the new toll plazas... just a bit simple - especially the roof, but who cares? it's a freakin toll plaza, hehehe...! the huge, loooong ones look real cool though...! was this when you were in Manila last (last?) month...?

what's that white building???

no idea. but i guess it has to be of NLEX's use... and yes i did take that during my trip to Manila.

Awesome photos...NLEX seems like its up to world standards now. Much improved from before. Toll booths look modern and the roading is smooth. Multiple lanes will greatly improve traffic.

the only thing is that it will be very expensive. but this could be worthwhile, provided it is very efficient

Here are the NLEX pictures i took last July...

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX1.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX2.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX3.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX4.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX5.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX6.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX7.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX8.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX9.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX10.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX11.jpg
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/500/93NLEX12.jpg

nice shots there. did you figure out why there's two major toll gates?

well each major toll gate is for northbound and southbound. They are quite near to MM, so they are the main payment booths when you leave/enter the city.

oh right. i see :) hadn't thought of that :D

how far did you go? when i was there in San Fernando they still didnt a lot of work to be done

I also went to San Fernando. I took a picture of the tollbooth in San Fernando, i'll post it later. I also took a pic of Robinsons Starmills. That place gets really traffic congested!:eek: I was stuck there for 45mins

that's why it's a bad place for malls. or at least the roads were not built for this type of traffic. they should have anticipated it

is it part of the plan to reconstruct also the secondary roads on both sides specially along the meycauayan-valenzuela portion?

im wondering how were they able to renovate the nlex w/ 4-lanes now even w/o expanding the sides? coz its only 3-lanes here in the south on 1 side from alabang to nichols?

if benbres will sell its stake on the project sooner, then who'll be the new franchise holder that wud collect the tolls? naku baka mahulog na namn yan sa kamay ng pncc!!

where are the other 2 new interchanges aside from marilao?

Yeah! and saan yung cloverleaf-like interchange na bago? Parang sa balintawak din daw but better?

hmm... is this new interchange in MM? didnt pass by one in NLEX last april.

thanks for the pictures, greyx!! how'd you take them? pretty clear...! NLEX looks awesome... absolutely impressive. it just looks messed up with that first toll booth like bulging up two-thirds of the way. hahaha... why is it like that? great shots with the sunset at the tip of the horizon and all...! haha...! nice!!

i dunno if this was posted earlier... pero it's cool
www.mntc.com :)

I'm very happy with the improvements on the NLEX :) Good to know it's gonna be finished by the end of this year, I think. =/ Nice site they have too; now hopefully they could move on with more infra projects for the North ;) Haha.

hey federal, nice find. look what i found
http://www.mntc.com/html/images/interchange_01.jpg
http://www.mntc.com/html/images/interchange_02.jpg

wOw, it's a nice pic!thansks, Renell!!

hmm.. i wondering, is this new cloverleaf interchange federal was talking about in the C5-NLEX interchange?

thanks for the pictures, greyx!! how'd you take them? pretty clear...! NLEX looks awesome... absolutely impressive. it just looks messed up with that first toll booth like bulging up two-thirds of the way. hahaha... why is it like that? great shots with the sunset at the tip of the horizon and all...! haha...! nice!!

thanks!:) I took them from the front seat of my car.

i explained to renell why the toll booths bulges in a post above.;)

The thing that they should have done first was set up the street-lights. If you look carefully in my pictures, there are no bulbs yet. So, on my way back to Manila, it was really dark (except for the headlights of the cars).

well in certain parts of the NLEX and SLEX it's a bit like French highways. no lights. just yours. and sometimes you're the only car in 500m.

from the map, subic looks so much out of the way. :D

took us a long time to get there. crossing through the lahar, crossing Pampanga, then into the mountains of Bataan and Zambales

The branching yellow line ----> Is that the link to Subic? And if yes, phase 3 pa... so super tagal! NLEX-c5 Interchange... wow... I wonder when will they finish it. It's getting exciting to have all there roads :) Sana Ayusin din yung balintawak interchange... only the southbound side of the bridge at EDSA Balintawak portion was widened...(palengke side)

And regarding NLEX...phase 1, there's a fork at the Burol Interchange area on the map... so may interchange na complicated dun? Or exit lang tapos road na pa-left towards Tabang toll plaza..

And ano na nga pala itsura ng Sta ines segment, yung after the toll plaza? Sharing pa rin pa yung 2 lanes sa isang side..?or they made a road na rin for the opposite side

And I also want to say, wow, grabe yung volume. Dpa tapos pero dami na cars.... tama lang yung expansion. How about extension to Ilocos....that would be an enjoying long drive

i recently passed by the NLex on my way to bulacan, & i think the huge toll plaza near the bocaue exit is for toll payment/collection, coz i noticed wala ng mini toll booths on the sothbound of each exit, except sa last 2 w/c is meycauayan & valenzuela, while the other toll plaza near balintawak is for d toll collection/payment of northbound vehicles kasi wala na ring toll booth sa northbound entrance of each interchange. yun ang analysis ko.

yeah, ryan said it before. but your description gives even more light.
it's a bit like SLEX's toll fee system, except that southbound vehicles just pay up without needing like a ticket or something.

wait, medyo na confuse din ako sa sinabi ko, i think there would stil be a mini toll booth on the southbound exit of each southbound interchange, coz the collectors at the bocaue toll plaza has to know who pays d ryt amount. kung walang tiket, card or something that indicates the exit point they left, baka mandaya ung iba.

Balintawak-Novaliches interchange flyover is done.... yung flyover na bago.. 1 lane lang pala... nice... but the jeeps run over the lane markings.. ouch

Cool. That flyover construction caused lots of traffic jams when i was over there. Good that its finished.

is that the flyover we see before approaching the Balintawak toll booth?

yes... that's the one. LEft side..

bump.. what's new in NLEX now? not the SCT (Subic-Clark-Tarlac) Expressway.

theres a tv commercial lately being shown & its says like...." ang bagong NLE... the road to a better life..."

a new toll rate adjustment was also published recently in the journals, sabi kasi, magiging flat rate ang balintawak to bocaue, mga 42 pesos, coz thats part of their 'open system' daw, they decided to make it fixed don sa area na may heaviest volume which refers to the distance between the 2 major toll plazas...balintawak & bocaue

NLE is 92% complete and it will definitely be inagurated by december, & be operated by the Manila North Tollways Corp.

Right-of-way problem may delay C5-NLE interconnection
By Alexander Villafania




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THE government's failure to acquire a Road Right-of-Way (RROW) will further delay the construction of a major highway connecting C-5 to the North Luzon Expressway, warns an executive of the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC).

Jose De Jesus, president of MNTC, the operator of the rehabilitated North Luzon Expressway, said they need the RROW to start constructing a major highway from C.P. Garcia in the Katipunan-C5 area to the Malinta Exit in NLE.

The highway will cut through Marcos Highway, Tandang Sora and Mindanao Avenue until it reaches Malinta Exit.





It will be built largely to decongest EDSA, which is the main route going toward the NLE. EDSA experiences among the worst congestions major holidays.

A RROW lawfully allows expropriation of certain potions of occupied real estate mainly for public works development.

De Jesus explained that the C5-NLE highway is the second phase of their major construction plan to create a secondary route connecting Metro Manila to the NLE.

"Our agreement with the government is for them to get the RROW for us and we will build the highway. But the problem is getting that RROW because they have to consider relocating 15,000 families along the areas where the new highway will cut through," De Jesus said.

Furthermore, De Jesus said the government would have to spend about 10 billion pesos just to relocate the families elsewhere.

"It's an especially big task for the government, but the longer we delay the lesser the chances of building the highway," De Jesus said.

wow... this is going to be huge!

THE government's failure to acquire a Road Right-of-Way (RROW) will further delay the construction of a major highway connecting C-5 to the North Luzon Expressway, warns an executive of the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC).

Jose De Jesus, president of MNTC, the operator of the rehabilitated North Luzon Expressway, said they need the RROW to start constructing a major highway from C.P. Garcia in the Katipunan-C5 area to the Malinta Exit in NLE.

The highway will cut through Marcos Highway, Tandang Sora and Mindanao Avenue until it reaches Malinta Exit.





It will be built largely to decongest EDSA, which is the main route going toward the NLE. EDSA experiences among the worst congestions major holidays.

A RROW lawfully allows expropriation of certain potions of occupied real estate mainly for public works development.

De Jesus explained that the C5-NLE highway is the second phase of their major construction plan to create a secondary route connecting Metro Manila to the NLE.

"Our agreement with the government is for them to get the RROW for us and we will build the highway. But the problem is getting that RROW because they have to consider relocating 15,000 families along the areas where the new highway will cut through," De Jesus said.

Furthermore, De Jesus said the government would have to spend about 10 billion pesos just to relocate the families elsewhere.

"It's an especially big task for the government, but the longer we delay the lesser the chances of building the highway," De Jesus said.

well... I do hope that this project pushes through and enough budget to pay-off the residents....at least make C5 connect properly to Commonwealth Ave and it will surely help in the decongestion...

yeah ur right..it is.

yeah, i still cant figure out where C-5 will connect with NLEX. No wonder they have a right-of-way problem, because there isnt really an easy route to connect them.

well... they can extend Katipunan Ave upto the stretch of Tandang Sora upto the its Mindanao Ave intersection... MIndanao Ave stretches from North Ave to Tandang Sora to Quirino Hi-way to somewhere in Gen. Luis in Valenzuela near Malinta Exit.... that stretch from Quirino Hiway in Novaliches to Malinta Exit is not yet finished I think... but they have began it already... I don't know where its end end...

but to connect Katipunan Ave to Tandang Sora, they have to demolish a lot of houses from the UP area to Commonwealth Ave... and widening the Tandang Sora Ave would demolish many houses as well and maybe part of the Iglesia ni Kristo main chapel.... when Mindanao Ave was extended from Quirino Hiway intersection.. many were also moved....

check post number 93 guys. C-5 will be connected to NLEX between Balintawak and Malinta..

It is confusing...if the northrail had a hard time with squatters, just imagine how hard this will be since a lot of the buildings are established permanent structures, unlike the temporary slums in northrail's route.

hmm.. the gov't has to buy these lands off. but not all its planned route would be housed. or at least my common sense thinks so:D

any new pics on the new north expressway, i've never travelled here since last 2 years.

hi. just got back from baguio....

Well, the stretch from Sta. Ines is still one lane on each direction sad to say (meaning they share one side of the highway while the other side is still grass and stuff. Road is smooth.

At the area of Pampanga, the roads are 2 lanes on each direction. Not much difference. I was expecting much more.

I Like the area from Bulacan.. it's four huge lanes per direction... and the roads are smooth... parang 110 sa LA... and it's all the way up to Balintawak..

Over-all, i was impressed... smooth ang road. Was doing 120-140kph at times. On the average, my speed was at 100. Damn... Lighting is not yet fixed though.

hmm... we really need to start enforcing some speed limits there in NLEX ;) before it used to say 60 to 100kmh but no can really bothered to break it because it was too bumpy or trafficky to go over 100kph.

but i can't wait till those 3 hour trips to my granny in pampanga is now demolished :yes:

Yeah they need to get the lighting fixed. It was pitch dark when we were driving there last August.

Well you cant really do anything about speed limits in RP. They have them, but its poorly enforced. I did see some patrol cars pull over 1 or 2 cars, though. In Germany, all highways have no speed limits:D

yeah well most french, and australian motorways have no lighting, except in the built-up areas. makes sense too, to not disturb anything around them with lights, the cars are enough distraction. that's why caution and head and tail lights were made ;)

But that is dangerous since you cant really see whats on the road. Also, if it is dark and you meet and oncoming car, the headlights will strain your eyes, possibly causing a crash.

could be.

you can't really see much on the motorways if it's dark, that's true, but at night there's usually you and two cars in a stretch of 500 meters. i dunno if it does strain your eyes, so i can't comment on that. anyways night-driving in general is dangerous ;)

I went on a cross-country drive from Florida to California with some friends, and somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Texas on a dark stretch of Interstate 10 at night I collided and ran over a deer! That really shook me and I had to stop driving and collect myself because I was freaking out! I killed Bambi!

Express way to progress
CITY SENSE By Paulo Alcazaren | The Philippine STAR 11/27/2004

http://www.philstar.com/philstar/main/20041127/images/lif4.jpg

Traveling more than 20 kilometers from Manila used to be considered a day trip. Balara, Cavite, Calamba, Los Baños, Antipolo or Bulacan were within reason-able reach by private car, arkila’d jeepney or funky combi. In the 1950s, destinations farther away req-uired more planning and logistical fore-thought. Baguio, Sibul Springs, Pagsanjan, Tagaytay and the beaches in Batangas were desirable recreational destinations.

Longer journeys were made possible by a fairly dependable train system that was as good as the European ones until the late ‘50s. Mismanagement and lack of upgrades spelled the eventual death of the Philippine iron horse. The trains carried passengers and freight, while the rest of the country’s goods were transported by water – our ports and ships were still serviceable then.

Although we had highways since the 1920s, these black-topped ribbons leading north, east and south of Manila were narrow and discontinuous. Since rail transport linked the north and south, the first long stretch out of Manila was eastward with Quezon Boulevard and its link after the war – Commonwealth Avenue (Dewey Boulevard only led to the edge of the city’s limits).

These two were supposed to be parkways – dedicated highways with extensive landscaping to promote comfortable and fast vehicular travel. Officials of the National Planning Commission and the Bureau of Public Works in the late ‘40s and early ‘50s had planned these, and the circumferential highway we now know as EDSA, to be separate from internal roads leading to residential and other zones. No commercial establishments were supposed to be accessible from the parkways. However, pressure from businessmen trying to take advantage of the growing traffic out of Manila laid all these plans for an efficient road and parkway system to waste.

The first real expressways were mooted since the ‘50s but had to wait for the Marcos era to see light. The first stretch was north and it was called a "superhighway." Super indeed it was, as no Philippine road was quite like it. This first superhighway had smooth concrete that did not melt after the first rain; it had fencing to keep carabaos and pedestrians from crossing, and toll booths just like what the US had. Driving on this superhighway in the late ‘60s was a breeze and travel time to Baguio was cut down to just five hours from the previous eight or more. In the ‘70s, this north superhighway was followed by a similar but shorter one south from Manila to Alabang. Eventually, both were extended but the north version still reached farther than the south.

Sadly, these two expressways deteriorated with almost the same speed as the rest of the country in the lead-up to People Power 1. The literal cracks in the pavement showed up early for both stretches. Fences eventually were not maintained and landscaping disappeared into brown patches or broken strands of thinning trees. The company that built and managed the expressways fell the way of all crony corporations. Eventually, we ended up with infrastructure teetering on the brink of collapse. People Power brought a change in government but infrastructure took longer to be rehabilitated.

By the ‘90s the focus of development turned south. The access to Laguna, Batangas, Cavite and Bicol beyond was better maintained than the north’s. This access led also to increased residential development and eventually to business and industrial parks that seemed to prefer the south.

In the last 15 years, the north expressway deteriorated even further. Bad maintenance, potholes, flooding in segments, the disappearance of shoulders, safety barriers, lighting, and emergency phones made the north toll road look like a third-world, third-class road. Holes in the fences even allowed people to cross (only in the Philippines!). The lack of control over overloaded vehicles hastened its demise as the concrete gave in to forces they were ill-designed to cope with. True, the toll fees were cheap – much cheaper than southern expressway fee – but what is the price paid for traffic congestion, immense wear and tear on vehicles, or the terrible accidents that keep on occurring as the expressway rumbles its way to oblivion?

Meanwhile, the south eclipsed the north in terms of economic growth by its relatively better access. Also, while southern Luzon had several parallel high-capacity options, the north only had the expressway (McArthur Highway stops short and is interrupted often). By the late ‘90s, the south had over 16 industrial and business parks to the north’s seven.

The economic future of Baguio, Clark, Subic and the rest of central and northern Luzon really depend on its connectivity with Manila. The National Capital Region and Metro Manila could be further decongested by opening up the north – hopefully learning from the southern sprawl how to better manage and balance out growth in the towns and cities along the way.

Thankfully, the government recognized the problem and found a solution. The North Luzon Expressway is to be rehabilitated, expanded and operated by the Manila North Tollways Corporation. The massive makeover includes 138 kilometers worth of new roads, total resurfacing of all roads, four new toll plazas and four new interchanges, the upgrading of all other interchanges and the widening of exits. To support these improvements new flyovers, pedestrian bridges, maintenance and supervision buildings are also being built.

The "new" North Luzon Expressway will be faster, more efficient, comfortable and most especially safer to travel on. Toll collection and traffic management will be fully computerized. Emergency phones using fiber optics will be provided between one and two kilometers apart. Closed-circuit TV monitoring will help traffic management as well as digitally record all sections for safety and security. Variable message signs will also give travelers continuous information and plans are afoot to tie in radio reports with the whole system to further make this information available to users.

This convenience, safety and speed have a price. But the increased toll fees will be worth it as shown by studies conducted by a leading planning consultancy group, PLANADES, based at the University of the Philippines. The report shows that gains achieved from reduced wear and tear, and smoother rides outweigh the increased costs. Savings per kilometer from reduced vehicular operating costs are projected to as much as seven percent depending on the class of vehicle – despite the toll adjustments.

The fees will also cover the installation of median barriers to prevent head-on collisions, reflectorized lane markings, improved lighting, 24-hour emergency assistance – emergency tow-trucks, first-aid and patrol vehicles. Speed monitoring and weight-monitoring equipment will also ensure both safety and the structural integrity of the new expressway. This means less or even the complete elimination of over-speeding, drunk-driving and driver error.

Aside from reduced vehicle operating costs, the UP PLANADES group projects the reduction in travel time (up to half the current travel time), the promotion of business and commercial development, the increase in regional tourism, a rise in regional employment and ultimately and increase in land values (up to about 50 percent price premium, says the report). Every kilometer of this expressway renewal and extension will bring P20 million in gross value added and will produce P18,000 annually in per capita gross regional domestic product.

The benefit of a new North Expressway goes beyond the immediate region of Central Luzon. All points north will benefit and balance the previous focus on the south. Foreign investors will also be monitoring this infrastructure improvement along with similar initiatives of sea port, airport and a revitalized north railroad system. The future investment attractiveness of the whole Luzon rests on how well efforts work to build a truly strong republic transport system.

The North Expressway will put the "express" back not just in travel, which it will surely do, but more importantly to the regional and national economy, which has slowed down to the average pace of Metro Manila’s traffic – almost motionless. The Philippines really has to get started moving. This new and improved expressway is a good start on a journey that ultimately will lead to the country’s long awaited progress.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
nice little article. I regularly check out Paulo Alcazaren's (who is he...?) weekly City Sense publishings in the Star. great articles like these pop out every so often. most of time, its on Metro Manila's urban landscape - or lack of it thereof (what a cliche - hahaha!) - which is really interesting, save for the fact that he talks about stuff way back in the past that can get a bit boring. he also writes about transportation and infrastructure and all that.

oh yeah... NLEX looks awesome in that aerial! looking really good..! I have to take a ride on that thing when I get back to Manila next July..!!

Very interesting article. NLEX will indeed increase demand for development in the north especially in Clark and Subic.

I wouldn't be surprised if people complained about the high toll fees in NLEX. But pessimism aside, I'm looking forward to NLEX going further north. :yes:, perhaps going the other way from the SCTEX.

the toll rates have finally been raised.. im wondering why cant the people just see the improved services and overall condition of the road and stop bitching about the raised toll.. i mean it does result to much better service and road experience right?

im just thinking that the pros and cons are about even..

Pampanga board seeks review of North toll

Editor's Note: Published on page A17 of the February 10, 2005 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines -- The Pampanga provincial board on Monday ordered its committee on good government to file a petition to review the approved toll at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) before the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB).

The League of Provincial Board Members in Central Luzon will also submit a separate petition to President Macapagal-Arroyo to stop the 400-percent increase in rates, said Pampanga Board Member Aurelio Gonzales, the league's vice chair.

Although the TRB has approved the new rates, it has yet to announce the date on which the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) can start collecting these, Jose de Jesus, Tollways president said.

The MNTC -- a joint venture of the Lopez-family owned First Philippine Infrastructure Corp., Groupe Egis, Leighton International, and the state-owned Philippine National Construction Corp. -- rehabilitated and expanded the 30-year-old highway at a cost of P18.5 billion.

Spanning more than 80 km from Balintawak, Quezon City, to Sta. Ines in
Mabalacat, Pampanga, it was the biggest toll road project by a private company since the 1970s.

The "open system" from Balintawak and any exit point up to Bocaue charges a flat rate of P42.

Opening rates at per kilometer for the "closed system" (Bocaue to Sta. Ines) were set at P2.48 for cars (Class 1); P6.21 for buses and light trucks (Class 2); and P7.45 for trucks and other heavy vehicles (Class 3). The strengthening of the peso in recent weeks lowered the rates by a centavo.

The PNCC, the original operator of the NLEx, used to collect P0.26, P0.52, and P0.78, respectively, for the same classes of vehicles.

Asked on Tuesday for comments on the new rounds of protest, De Jesus said: "They are within their rights to do that, and it should be directed at the TRB."

De Jesus also defended the new rates, saying these were derived from the P0.82 per km base toll rates approved in 1998 under the contract's Supplemental Toll Operating Agreement .

Foreign exchange and inflation rates have caused fees to rise. The MNTC, he said, was not passing on to the toll, the additional construction cost of around P7 billion.

Tonette Orejas with a report from Carmela Reyes, PDI Central Luzon Desk

yes indeed it does. If the rate remains at pre-rehabilitation prices, then you'll going to see the roads in pre-rehab conditions very quick.

If the rates will be pushed down by TRB (highly unlikely as it's local provincial board not a big nationwide clamor yet) then then government will have to pay the diff. Similar to MRT. After Lopez experience in Maynilad this automatic feature gives the the comfort level to invest in spite of government's frequent meddling in agreed upon prices as soon as someone complains.

oh here we go again using government funds to subsidize the public, people clamor for very good service and very good highways, and so investors invested billions of pesos to come with a world class expressway and when its time for them to make money to recoup their investments people start compalining abt the high toll rates

IMO this is a flaw within the BOT laws. But then there is a catch-22 here. This is exactly the problem when we talk about privatizing infrastructure projects. Of course private entities want a return on investment and are going to seek as high a price as they can get when charging for use. Unfortunately, we're kind of stuck this way because the government has no funds to fund these things themselves. In an ideal world, things shouldn't be privatized and government should subsidize these things-- something that will never happen unless there's an efficient tax collection system and efficient government. This way we take the profit motive out of rendering public services so that the public doesn't need to pay for someone else to make money.

I just wanna ask if anybody here know when is NLEX was first inaugurated? Is it in the 60s? or 70s? :?

oh here we go again using government funds to subsidize the public, people clamor for very good service and very good highways, and so investors invested billions of pesos to come with a world class expressway and when its time for them to make money to recoup their investments people start compalining abt the high toll rates

This one's for the Issues in Development, but you can trace it back to the inability to collect taxes to the right people, among other things.

Guess if some motorists don't like it I guess it's back to the Macarthur Highway

@culiat, if you read absent-minded's posted article it says NLEX was built in the 60's while SLEX followed in the 70s

This one's for the Issues in Development, but you can trace it back to the inability to collect taxes to the right people, among other things.

Guess if some motorists don't like it I guess it's back to the Macarthur Highway

@culiat, if you read absent-minded's posted article it says NLEX was built in the 60's while SLEX followed in the 70s

as far i know, nlex was inagurated during the late 60s, but it wasnt as long as 84 km yet, while the slex was opened in 1969 but only upto alabang area. and that time twas considered as the most modern in SEA, next to japanese expressways :)

This one's for the Issues in Development, but you can trace it back to the inability to collect taxes to the right people, among other things.

Guess if some motorists don't like it I guess it's back to the Macarthur Highway

@culiat, if you read absent-minded's posted article it says NLEX was built in the 60's while SLEX followed in the 70s
Oh ok, Thanks

Guess if some motorists don't like it I guess it's back to the Macarthur Highway

yeah, I believe it is. they were reporting it last night on TV Patrol. hehe. some people are actually willing to waste several hours going through Macarthur Hwy to avoid paying the increased toll. it was so heavily clogged up though. and I'm sure it'll get worse as the govt pushes its rehabilitation/reconstruction.

NLEX looked awesome. absolutely world-class! the new toll plazas are so nice..! I really hope the protesters don't get their way with repealing the toll increases. it would be such a waste to see the new expressway deteriorate into its old conditions again in only just a couple of years.

yeah well most french, and australian motorways have no lighting, except in the built-up areas. makes sense too, to not disturb anything around them with lights, the cars are enough distraction. that's why caution and head and tail lights were made ;)
Sad to say head & tail lights are sometimes not part of the vehicle some idiots drive. ;) Also notice how one side of the road is sometimes higher than the other side. That principle isnt followed here that strictly.

yeah, I believe it is. they were reporting it last night on TV Patrol. hehe. some people are actually willing to waste several hours going through Macarthur Hwy to avoid paying the increased toll. it was so heavily clogged up though. and I'm sure it'll get worse as the govt pushes its rehabilitation/reconstruction.

NLEX looked awesome. absolutely world-class! the new toll plazas are so nice..! I really hope the protesters don't get their way with repealing the toll increases. it would be such a waste to see the new expressway deteriorate into its old conditions again in only just a couple of years.
Those who used MacArthur to avoid paying the toll deserve the traffic. :lol:

I tranversed NLEX yesterday and I thought I left the Philippines. Just wish I had my car with me. Would've driven from Balintawak to Dau in an hour. ;)

IMO this is a flaw within the BOT laws. But then there is a catch-22 here. This is exactly the problem when we talk about privatizing infrastructure projects. Of course private entities want a return on investment and are going to seek as high a price as they can get when charging for use. Unfortunately, we're kind of stuck this way because the government has no funds to fund these things themselves. In an ideal world, things shouldn't be privatized and government should subsidize these things-- something that will never happen unless there's an efficient tax collection system and efficient government. This way we take the profit motive out of rendering public services so that the public doesn't need to pay for someone else to make money.

actually the bot law provides that the government (having not enough funds) invites local and international investors to build and then operate the project for certain period of time (good enough to get a nice profit from their investment) after that they will transfer the whole project to the government and thats the time when the toll ways revert back to government hands can subsidize and charge cheaper toll fees.

actually the bot law provides that the government (having not enough funds) invites local and international investors to build and then operate the project for certain period of time (good enough to get a nice profit from their investment) after that they will transfer the whole project to the government and thats the time when the toll ways revert back to government hands can subsidize and charge cheaper toll fees.

Yes you're right. The BOT scheme is a great idea for governments that do not have enough funds to build its own infra. For the government that has no money, this is one of the only choices (which I acknowledged in my post). Usually, BOT lease terms call for at least 30 year operation periods, which is a realistic enough timespan for private entities to get a return of investment.

Problem#1 for me is that if there is an operating loss, the government is expected to subsidize the deficit. For the private entity that is operating the infra project, this means that they still are not making a profit and are just breaking even. However, one could argue that the point of doing business for a private entity is not to break even but to make a profit. For the government, it kind of defeats the purpose of having a BOT scheme-- although I do see that this cost is most definitely lower than if the project was totally paid for by the government. Problem #2 for me is that because it is a privatized project, the objective is always a good ROI, in other words, there needs to be a profit. A socialized project assumes that while profit would be nice, break even is the final goal. And the break even point can be reached by non-quantifiable or non-economic returns on investment-- for instance, an improved quality of life. There is a big difference in how you charge the public for use when non-economic returns are taken into account. Government expenditures for social projects is the reason people pay taxes.

But this brings us back to the original reason for BOT-- government has no funds to start with so it has its hands tied and has to grant franchises to private entities in order to fund major infra. Like I said, ideally the government should do these things on its own but it can't.

the government should fix its fiscal house in order, improve tax collection and rid of graft and corruption, then we can see government coffers rise to fund the countrys vital infrastructures important impove the nation economic situation

Old Manila North Road rehab gets Arroyo’s nod
By Ding Cervantes
The Philippine Star 02/13/2005

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga — President Arroyo has ordered the speedy upgrading of the old Manila North Road (MNR) to provide the public with an alternative to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) where toll rates have increased by 388 percent since its takeover by the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) last Wednesday.

The President said some P500 million has been released for the upgrading of the MNR. However, P1.2 billion is still needed to fully rehabilitate it.

The President told the officers of the Kapampangans in Media Inc. (KAMI), who she inducted into office at her official residence here, that the government-owned Philippine National Construction Corp. (PNCC) will still earn from NLEX operations since it is entitled to some six percent of the MNTC’s gross earnings.

She asked Renato Diaz, presidential adviser on Northern Luzon, to study and submit recommendations on KAMI’s proposal to use part of PNCC’s six percent share for the upgrading of the MNR.

Ramon Aquino, Central Luzon director of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), said an additional P1.2 billion is needed to finish all upgrading plans for the MNR.

"While many Filipinos are willing to pay more for their comfort through the use of the upgraded NLEX, a greater percentage of the traveling public might not be able to afford the considerably high toll rates," he said.

Aquino said the MNR, which was the only main route between Manila and the North before the NLEX was constructed during the term of former President Ferdinand Marcos, has been in need of "upgrading and widening."

The upgrading of the old highway stretches from Meycauayan, Bulacan to Mabalacat, Pampanga.

The plan includes the widening of the MNR’s entire length from two to four lanes, rehabilitation of the existing four-lane sections, upgrading and concreting of flood-prone portions, improvement of 15 bridges, and total replacement of 12 other deteriorated bridges.

The P500 million so far released was used for the reconstruction and widening of the Mabiga and San Felipe bridges in Mabalacat, Pampanga; the concreting of the MNR section in Balangcas, Sto. Tomas, Pampanga; and the asphalt overlays from the City of San Fernando to Angeles City and from Angeles to Mabalacat.

Thats good, not only will it be an alternative to NLEX, it will reduce traffic congestion and improve commuting time. but this could take a while, i'm guessing more than a year?

I found this.

"Use part of NLEx toll for alternate highway
POSTSCRIPT By Federico D. Pascual, Jr.
The Philippine Star 02/13/2005

CLARK FIELD – President Arroyo adopted yesterday my suggestion that part of the toll being collected from motorists using the North Luzon Expressway be set aside for widening and upgrading the alternate MacArthur Highway.

Saying that my suggestion was a great idea, she told former Nueva Ecija congressman Renato Diaz, now the presidential adviser on North Luzon development, to carry it out. Diaz said he would work on it.

The President said part of the 6-percent share in toll collections of the Philippine National Construction Corp. could be earmarked for improving that part of MacArthur Highway in Bulacan and Pampanga alongside the NLEx. "

As expected....

Toll operator says NLEx traffic lower than expected

Higher fees for the use of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) have literally a taken toll on the Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC) as it reported lower than expected traffic volume during the first month of operations.

MNTC President Jose de Jesus said the volume of vehicles plying the NLEx was 30% lower than the 190,000 vehicles per day expected to use the toll road.

"In the past month, there were only 130,000 to 135,000 vehicles (using the NLEx). But it's part of the risk we are taking. We hope the traffic improves," Mr. de Jesus said in an interview.

If the low traffic continues, Mr. de Jesus said the company may resort to cutting the budget for operations to meet obligations to lenders due in June.

"We may reduce operational costs, but not too much because the service will suffer. We are taking the risk because the project is not guaranteed by the government," he added.

The MNTC needs to meet the projected 190,000 vehicles per day to be able to collect the revenues needed to pay creditors for the P18-billion toll road.

Mr. de Jesus said more vehicles are plying the McArthur highway, the alternative road to the NLEx, since they started collecting toll fee which is at least 400% higher starting MNTC's takeover on Feb. 10.

The MNTC had to declare about four 30-minute toll holidays on its first day of operations as some motorists were not prepared for the toll fee hike.

The MNTC settled $5-million initial payment to lenders in December 2004 despite the delay in taking over the NLEx from the Philippine National Construction Corp.

Since the MNTC was not yet operating the highway in December, Mr. de Jesus said the company had to draw the amount from a $20-million hedge fund from investors such as the Lopez Group and the Egis and Leighton Contractors Asia Ltd.

MNTC creditors include the Asian Development Bank, International Finance Corp., Export Finance Corp. of Australia, and SEK of Sweden, plus other multilateral and international banks from Japan, Germany and the US.

The MNTC is allowed to operate the P18-bilion NLEx until 2030 with an expected 13.9% rate of return to investors.

Mr. de Jesus said there will be no toll holidays during the Holy Week. -- Anna Barbara L. Lorenzo

the higher toll fees is the main reason but initially we expect that in the long run people will realize that there is a price for convenience

unless of course they want to use the old mcarthur highway and caught up in never ending traffic jam that will cost them more gasoline and maintenance cost

Well some people are willing to take that risk.. but like you said people will slowly have to adapt to the high prices. Either that or they will eagerly line-up when Northrail is done or the buses will be smiling again i.e. they would commute than drive :colgate:

some of the pics I have taken today...

Service road approaching NLEX-Balintawak Interchange. Daming squatters pa rin here. Be extra careful. Ang sikip as in.
http://tinypic.com/2bvfv4

End of Service road approaching NLEX opening. Novaliches Interchange at view. It's magulo pa din. Jeepneys are at the end of the flyover (infront of the police station!) waiting for passengers from Novaliches (NLEX SB)
http://tinypic.com/2bvgok

NLEX Southbound.
http://tinypic.com/2bvg5k
Some cars really don't know why those lanes were painted...
http://tinypic.com/2bw107

EDSA Southbound... finally :D Grabe.. it's so luwag. Sana ma-maintain yung market na clean of vendors...
http://tinypic.com/2bw12u

What time in the day did you take these photos? I was expecting more vehicles on the road, being that it is Metro Manila afterall. :)

^ what happened sa last picture?? did they remove the center island? nagmuka lalo syang concrete jungle...sorry

& hows the tollway? was it worth paying the tollfee? how do you compare the average volume of vehicles that pass thru bet nlex & slex? which is busier bet. the 2? :)

nice pictures!! traffic does seem to be a little light for Metro Manila. hehe! and EDSA looks pretty good. wala na bang traffic dun? that's the northern end of EDSA, right...? or somewhere around there? is the MRT-3 supposed to extend up to there in the future?

I hope people quit boycotting the NLEX and protesting the toll hike. they have to understand and accept the fact that the rehabilitation of the NLEX was not done for free and that they're gonna have to pay for better facilities and services. I would hate to see the expressway deteriorate in just a few years because the management runs out of money to properly maintain it...

umm, is the service road already inside the NLEX? like in the second shot, that's already after you pay and enter the expressway?

^ what happened sa last picture?? did they remove the center island? nagmuka lalo syang concrete jungle...sorry

& hows the tollway? was it worth paying the tollfee? how do you compare the average volume of vehicles that pass thru bet nlex & slex? which is busier bet. the 2? :)


Well, for one, the toll fee was indeed expensive. 40 bucks i think (if i remember right) from Balintawak to Malinta! But the drive was smooth... was doing 120 all throughout. It was fast... With the current state of the SLEX, i think NLEX would be less bussier since it is wider on the old congested areas where they made it flat rate.

EDSA (the last picture..) they removed the island (by MMDA) and converted it into two more lanes... so super wide na approaching NLEX-EDSA Interchange. The problem that has not been solved is the NLEX exit from Northbound EDSA, it's small. Taking up two out of three lanes of EDSA where it narrows due to the small bridge. The otherside (SB approaching Balintawak marker) is bigger... (3 lanes plus 2 lanes service road.)

nice pictures!! traffic does seem to be a little light for Metro Manila. hehe! and EDSA looks pretty good. wala na bang traffic dun? that's the northern end of EDSA, right...? or somewhere around there? is the MRT-3 supposed to extend up to there in the future?

I hope people quit boycotting the NLEX and protesting the toll hike. they have to understand and accept the fact that the rehabilitation of the NLEX was not done for free and that they're gonna have to pay for better facilities and services. I would hate to see the expressway deteriorate in just a few years because the management runs out of money to properly maintain it...

umm, is the service road already inside the NLEX? like in the second shot, that's already after you pay and enter the expressway?

I took these pics on a Holy Wednesay... so no traffic. But usually, this part of EDSA seems uncongested lately even on normal days. Yes, it is indeed the northern end of EDSA. MRT3 is suppose to pass there...

The service road has been there before. MNTC also fixed portions of it approaching the tollway. It is separate the tollway so you pay nothin for using it.

Will post more pics in the future.

unless of course they want to use the old mcarthur highway and caught up in never ending traffic jam that will cost them more gasoline and maintenance cost
i wonder how much worse traffic is gonna be there when SM valenzuela opens

Yeah. I can't imagine. Fatima bound jeepenys have block the 4 lane highway... what more when this mall opens. :bash:


is NLEX Epass compatible with that of SLEX? or you have to have both?

well at least 40 bucks is still less than a dollar!! :D not bad at all (at least from balintawk to tabang), for using a world class tollway :)

i hope they (QC city govt) could do somethin urgent on the area of camachile in front of iglesia. like what federal said, its stil kinda magulo, and also on the arae around the balintawak market->(i couldnt the understand the vendors why they have to keep on stayin outside eh malaki naman ang space sa loob??!!) :(

shempre, sa loob may bayad... sa labas :D wala.

Nice pics, federal:) kulang talaga ng diciplina among the jeepney drivers. NLEX is excellent, but once you exit the highway it is chaotic!!

Check this out...They say that NLEX has radar, cameras, etc to detect speeders!:D

http://www.autoindustriya.com/yabbse/index.php?board=5;action=display;threadid=18116

cool, finally some hi-tech stuff for our expressways...
but not really cool for "formula one" drivers. :colgate:

Check this out...They say that NLEX has radar, cameras, etc to detect speeders!:D

http://www.autoindustriya.com/yabbse/index.php?board=5;action=display;threadid=18116
lagot! kaya lang dapat nilang itaas ang maximum speed from 80 to at least 100. hindi praktical yung 80.

we paid 200 from Sta Ines to Balintawak. Grabe mahal... pero I like the stretch closer to Manila.. 8 lanes of high-speed traffic... yung ibang booths automatic yung dispenser ng cards... on our way back, may security guard na nagpre-press ng button tapos hinuhugot yung card... hehe

haha! cool thread... the next pages go on to talk about high tech sensors and high res cameras they've installed along the NLEX. world class pala talaga! wow!! I guess this justifies the high toll rates.

it seems like the new, world class road conditions are causing more accidents on the expressway though. haha! there is quite a noticable increase in the number of accidents on the NLEX being reported on the news now... or maybe that's just me.

we paid 200 from Sta Ines to Balintawak. Grabe mahal... pero I like the stretch closer to Manila.. 8 lanes of high-speed traffic... yung ibang booths automatic yung dispenser ng cards... on our way back, may security guard na nagpre-press ng button tapos hinuhugot yung card... hehe

hahaha! how does the dispenser work? para san ung card...? so does that mean there are no more employees in the booths to collect money?

btw, do they have the contactless e-pass thing (as in SLEX, Skyway) on the NLEX as well?

the dispensers are present on some toll booths... Parang sa renaissancel parking where you press a button to get a ticket/card.. tapos you give that to the person at the exit.. I guess they have manual booths at the high-traffic areas and exits where money has to be paid kasi alam mo naman medyo maraming dishonest din... :D I think automatic stuff is just applied to the card dispensing thingey

Yes, they have the E-pass thing.. they call it EC lane ata. Cool.

And the booths are kinda high-tech.. yung may attendants... may parang LCD screen pa sa side (bottom of the window) na parang it shows ata your headlight levels or whether one is busted... i don't know what that was for actually.

Lahat may automatic gates na.

The lighting after the Balintawak Toll-Plaza (Southbound) seem to be off. Maybe it's because it ain't included in the paid areas :D

http://www.pncc.net/pncc/pncc_north.asp

guys.. check out the Burol Exit. there's a fork going to Tabang. How does this look like? Is there an interchange? Kasi when i passed by parang d ko napansin sa sobrang bilis ng vehicles... :D

Yeah. I've seen that before. It's not a proper turnpike is it?

http://www.pncc.net/pncc/pncc_north.asp

guys.. check out the Burol Exit. there's a fork going to Tabang. How does this look like? Is there an interchange? Kasi when i passed by parang d ko napansin sa sobrang bilis ng vehicles... :D
It's just like a flyover. People going to Turn right to go up the flyover. Ang hirap i-describe pag walang picture. Sorry. Hehe. :)

so squatter na interchange lang..? aww

so squatter na interchange lang..? aww

uhm just imagine the edsa-ayala flyover ramp then a mere 5km 6-lane expressway extension & at the end is a small toll-plaza, then thats the end of it. &thats the only nlex interchange w/o access to vehicles goin north. ewan koba :)

so southbound lang... mag e-exit ka pa somewhere south then enter again on the otherside para makanorthbound? Baka walang pondo ... :D

^ yup... thats what they usually do, take the nearest exit south, bocuae, w/c means another 5 km, then turn to the other side & enter the tollway again this time goin north :)

some scenic pics taken this weekend.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/nlex/IMG_0171s.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/nlex/IMG_0164s.jpg
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/nlex/IMG_0163s.jpg

WOW! :eek2:

pra konti and bumabyahe dhl siguro mahal ang toll fee buti nga yn wala sayadong traffic

kasi summer vacation na, plus it's a weekend. thanks for the photos duds...i will try to upload yung kuha ko din...saturday. smooth and surface at pagkaka asphalt. sabi ng kakilala ko, galing daw sa lahar ang ginamit dun. is it true?

here's the photo...i just uploaded...parang sa bandang Bulacan na ata to.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid165/p29eb000a6253eaa046b39edd5e7c2e3b/f4668d4c.jpg

cool shots!! ang ganda ganda talaga ng NLEX!! I saw their slogan they were flashing on their LED signboards on the news on TV a couple months ago... "LOVE THIS ROAD!" haha! I sure do... if only I could drive on it! hehe! that'd be awesome...!

is everything completely done already? like the center barrier/wall thingies and all the toll plazas and signages and everything? btw, did they landscape around the interchanges and stuff?

pra konti and bumabyahe dhl siguro mahal ang toll fee buti nga yn wala sayadong traffic

well it's not always bumper-to-bumper in NLEX man. even during pre-rehab. what would happen is that people would use it at different times during a long weekend (day before, early morning, or late day) so that it would be normal traffic flow the whole day, not open roads 8am and bumper to bumper 12pm.

yeah... this is a very good expressway.. much better than before

happy you guys liked them. imo, traffic seems light because there are no slow vehicles and distances between cars are quite wide, at least at that point. traffic usually builds-up when slow-moving vehicles (slower than the minimum speed limit...hindi yata sinisita ang mga ito) occupy both the inner and outer lanes. saka marami nasa rest-stop, kumakain. :)

@francis, you're right that's bulacan cause there are four lanes, concrete center barrier and lampposts. di ko sigurado kung gumamit nga ng lahar sa paggawa ng kalsada, probably the first layer, pinakailalim. i noticed that during construction a white/gray mixture was used to cover the scraped old surface before they poured the first layer of asphalt, not really sure. but if they really used lahar, that would be really cool. :cool:

@absent-minded, not yet completely done. there are still some minor improvements/repairs ongoing near the toll plazas.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/nlex/IMG_0171s.jpg

noticed these patches of grass (center-left of photo) in the middle of the two-lane portion of nlex. may distance na siguro 200 meters from each other.
just wonder why?

Great pics:okay: That patch of grass is the center median, and its normal for highways around the world to have them. They provide a long runoff area for cars in trouble and prevents cars from going to the other side by allowing the driver to have some time to react and return to his lane. It can also be upgraded so that extra lanes can be built in the future.

Yous talking about that brown patch of grass.... yeah that is a weird innit:D Or is it gravel? :?

Seems pretty small for extra lanes.

beautiful! i was there nung ongoing pa lang ang rehabilitation at grabe ang trapik non--5 hours kami nasa nlex LOL! pero ang ganda na ngayon.

Here be the plans for SCTEX-NLEX interchange. Could it be all worth the 200 percent something increase in the future?
http://sctep.epinoy.com/images/ex06.jpg

http://sctep.epinoy.com check the website for more details:)

maybe if vehicle volume increases, costs could go down. I hope they finish the skyway... para it could go down too...

How much are the NLEX tolls? Cause here in Australia I think it's around 200-300 pesos. Yous definately got it going too with the toll, perhaps pinoys are just cheap:D

No...our standard of living and average salaries in the Philippines is much lower than Australia, so high toll fees impact Filipinos more than Australians;)

No...our standard of living and average salaries in the Philippines is much lower than Australia, so high toll fees impact Filipinos more than Australians;)


yeah... I just went on a boat ride in capri a while ago, and it was 17 euros to see the blue grotto, which was pretty, but the entire experience lasted less than a minute. That much money would have enabled me to tour Dos Palmas in Palawan :D

No...our standard of living and average salaries in the Philippines is much lower than Australia, so high toll fees impact Filipinos more than Australians;)

that's true. but not to say it's getting nowhere for some ppl in the phils. the only problem is that our poverty line is like the san andreas fault.

A nice commentary on NLEX, let's hope SLEX will follow suit.

From http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=10725

Opinion
By Dan Mariano

Since May the Manila North Tollway Corp. (MNTC), operator of the newly rehabilitated and modernized National Luzon Expressway, has been strictly enforcing traffic regulations—basic rules such as keeping the innermost (left) lane open and using it only for overtaking, maintaining the speed limit, and other rules far too many Filipino motorists have chosen to ignore.

MNTC believes, and rightly so, that rules exist for a reason. Most of the chaos on our roads today is caused by indifference, ignorance or plain arrogance. Chaos results in road rage that, in turn, gives rise to all sorts of problems.

Motorists who regularly ply the South Luzon Expressway, for instance, will tell you that anarchy reigns there. You have slow-moving vehicles on the inner lane, while overtaking on the shoulders.

The notion that you can get to your destination faster if you break the rules has time and again been shown to be a dangerous idea. You endanger yourself and others on the road.

Improving the travel time and travel predictability really rests on the strict enforcement of road rules and regulations. This is being proven now at the NLEX. Travel time is very predictable, even within the speed limitations imposed by MNTC patrols. Safety has improved considerably and traffic congestion has diminished substantially. Now is a good time for agencies like the Land Transportation Office, the Metro Manila Development Authority and other government agencies to take a good hard look at how it is done at the NLEX.

Yeah, they're very strict in implementing the rules in NLEX.

They have patrollers that ply the tollway regularly and I've seen them ask some violators (like the trucks that I saw were "racing" and the slow car on the innermost lane) to pull-over the shoulder lane because of what they've done.

So be careful when driving in NLEX, always remember their rules and regs ;)

the commentary on SLEX is very true!!! subukan nyo~!! :D but u cant blame some drivers there, nobody is motivated to drive safely in an overpriced, traffic-infested, chaotic & very poorly maintained slex :(

Well three words: About Damn Time. The left lane should be for the fast cars, but I guess fast cars have been taken down too, so that leaves it empty:D Of course there will be traffic during maybe Easter and Christmas, but that's expected. It really should be implemented everywhere, earlier.

---------
07.20.05
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http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b358/thomasian/NLEX.jpg

aaron, which part is this? papunta ba itong tabang? if so, two-lanes lang pala ang portion na ito. was asking, kasi the two-lane stretch of nlex past sta. rita exit alam ko walang namang lampposts pa. it's nice, thank you.

very nice :okay: thanks aaron.

Hindi na actually part yan nung main expressway, yan yung palabas na.
Hindi ako sure kung anong bayan ng Bulacan papunta yan pero alam ko yan yung exit bago mag Pulilan.

tama, sa may tabang nga ito. nagulat lang kasi ako sa lampposts, tapos two lanes lang ang road kaya akala ko naginstall na ng ilaw sa may pampanga part ng nlex (naisip ko...ang bilis naman). i also didn't know that they didn't expand this portion to more than two lanes. nway, salamat ulit aaron:)

i found this enriching editorial at www.philstar.com.. hopefully more people would see the beauty of the NLEX..

‘An intelligent tollway’
FROM THE STANDS By Domini M. Torrevillas
The Philippine Star 08/09/2005

Media people like to believe what they’re told if they see it with their own eyes. So it was that a group of editors and columnists, including yours truly, took a trip to Bulacan to a see, and experience, the thrill of riding through the new North Luzon Expressway, otherwise called NLE, or NLEX. You bet, we were unanimous in saying that the NLE proves true what its promoters say – that "the road to a better life starts here."

We had about 15 minutes (before it was 30 minutes) seamless travel, over smooth lanes from Balintawak, then exited at Tabang then went on the busy, dusty McArthur Highway going to Baliwag then Malolos. The 15-minute seamless travel is said – and we believe it – to reflect the whole 84-kilometer stretch of NLE from Balintawak up to Sta. Ines, Pampanga which is the end of the road. The 84-km stretch now takes only one hour to traverse, as opposed to two hours, up to December last year when the NLE system became operational.

Just before we turned into the Balintawak tollgate, we made a stop at the Operations and Management Center where we were briefed on NLEX operations by Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC) president and CEO Jose de Jesus, Tony Mabasa, president of Tollways Management Corporation (TMC) and Benjie Suzar, TMC marketing services manager.

From the briefing room we moved to the traffic control room where technicians monitor vehicle movements along the expressway. We could see on computer screens all sorts of vehicles at the toll booths, plying the expressway, or having a breakdown, and the emergency call booths (100 of them on the NLE), from where motorists stop to report such breakdowns. Benjie assured us that motorists in distress are assisted within an average of 20 minutes by a patrol crew.

Then we moved on to the toll supervision booth, where we saw the televised goings on at the toll booths. So everything moving on the lanes are monitored, and hidden cameras click at vehicles going beyond the speed limit.

The expressway officers are quite strict about speed limits, overloading, and vehicles without tail lights. LTO officers come up to the motorists and fine them. I think it was Burpie, or was it Tony? who said that a number of government officials have been caught overspeeding, and they were mad when apprehended at the exit tollgate. But now, generally, apprehended drivers express satisfaction over pictures shown them at the exit gate showing their speed through the photos taken by hidden cameras. "Hey, it’s good they have modern surveillance systems here," is the usual comment.

But there was one Porsche sportscar driver who zoomed above the limit (the speed limit is 100 kph but going beyond that to 120 kph is pardoned). The NLE patrol officer could not stop him at the toll gate as he (the driver) simply whizzed through the gate because he was carrying an E-pass. But we saw the picture of the Porsche and its travel speed registered on the screen.

Benjie told us that from 90 to 100 citations are issued a day. Twenty-five percent of vehicular breakdowns are caused by tire defects (such as recapped tires, deterioration and not having the right pressure.)

Tony said that since February, 160 deaths have been caused by vehicular accidents, some of them due to overspeeding. Some motorists insist that the speed limit should be increased. They pay for the NLE, but why can’t they travel fast? Tony says, "If all vehicles were world class, we can set the speed limit to 160 kph, but how can we when there are old vehicles and jeepneys using the expressway?"

Tollways Management Corporation’s operating themes include driver education. You’ll be surprised, said Benjie, at how many drivers do not know rules and regulations. That’s why the expressway has plenty of road signs and lane markings, a motorists’ handbook, and emphasizes the cooperation of trimedia, and drivers’ seminars.

Jose de Jesus said the tollways serve "as a major growth catalyst for Central and North Luzon. We’d like as many people as possible to see the road. We’re organizing efforts to call attention and highlight little-known tourist destinations aside from Clark and Subic."

He ticked off some benefits provided by the new road. Industries along the countryside are made more accessible; travel to Singapore and Indonesia via Clark becomes attractive, and the travel time from Manila to points in Central Luzon has been drastically cut short. "Before, the poor condition of the expressway took so much time," he said, and added, "This tollway is an intelligent tollway, a caring tollway."

MNTC experienced management crisis upon opening NLE because of its rates - from P42 to P210 for the 84-kilometer stretch. But the intelligence of the tollway – faster travel time, excellent roads, safety measures - is now beginning to be fully understood by motorists.

For over three decades, the expressway was marked by potholes, narrow lanes and consequently, heavy traffic. Remember the long, tedious hours we spent just to be able to get out of the tollgates in Balintawak? Wow, didn’t you just hate that part of the trip back from a nice holiday in Vigan or Baguio? If the new NLE had not been expanded, you could imagine how horrendous the projected 2015 traffic volume would be, with average travel speeds (even at non-peak hours) at 16 kilometers per hour.

Fortunately, someone had to take on the challenge to rebuild the NLE. The Lopez Group ventured into road infrastructure to improve and upgrade the expressway. The government would not have been able to do the job, lacking as it does the resources to finance such a massive development. For example, for 2004, government set aside P864.8 billion for fiscal responsibilities Out of this, only P52.9 billion or roughly 6 percent will go to infrastructure. And of this, only P23.7 billion or 3 percent would go to the construction, paving and improvement of roads, bridges and flyovers.

The Lopez Group – through First Philippine Infrastructure Development Corporation (FPIDC) — partnered with the Philippine Government through the Philippine National Construction Corporation (PNCC). PNCC’s franchise allows it to enter into joint venture schemes and choose its partners without the need for public bidding.

The joint venture created the Manila North Tollways Corporation (MNTC), which was mandated to finance, rehabilitate, operate and maintain the NLE for the next 30 years. MNTC also invited partners, including Egis Projects of France, Leighton Asia Limited of Australia, and PNCC. Investments of the partners, through a combination of equity (32 percent) and debt financing (68 percent), amount to P18 billion.

Oscar Lopez, the man at the helm of the Lopez Group, summarizes the great potential of NLE. He is shown in a video presentation saying, "The NLE propels the country to progress and success. The road to success starts with the expressway."

^^ Wow, thats awesome. Nice article.

For anyone interested, you can see NLEX (in high resolution) in Google Earth:D
Although i think they took that satellite shot a few years ago. The northern part of NLEX is not yet finished in their shot.

of google earth? in google, of course! :D

EDIT... that's strange... I was replying to thomasian, and my post came before his... cool!

Where's the link :?

found this in an editorial from abscbnnews.com.. i didnt include the other portions.. ehhe..

Now some good news for a change. Thanks to rehab work that has turned North Luzon Expressway into a world-class toll way, many travel destinations in Central Luzon and other points north of Manila are beginning to show the makings of a boom.

Tourist spots in the provinces of Pampanga, Zambales, Pangasinan and La Union have upgraded their service amenities for visitors who have begun to experience the pleasure of land travel on the improved road networks through Central Luzon and the Ilocos. More and more foreigners—notably Taiwanese, Mainland Chinese and South Koreans—are frequenting the beach resorts and other tourist spots in the two regions. Domestic tourists too are reportedly flocking to those spots in growing numbers.

The Mount Pinatubo Wellness spa, which a recent visitor describes as "a fascinating oasis amid a picturesque pastoral environment among rolling hills and mountain ranges," is a recent offering in health tourism.

With the cost of international travel reaching prohibitive levels, thanks to skyrocketing fuel costs and deteriorating foreign-exchange rates, domestic tourism is on the rebound. Nowhere has this welcome development been more evident than in the provinces served by the North Luzon Expressway.

there's something new in nlex...plants in the center.:okay:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/national%20roads/nlex/nlex5.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y91/imagesaver1206/national%20roads/nlex/nlex2.jpg

Are those concrete blocks permanent?

thxns for the fotos duds. That's nice plants at NLEx . It just shows how lush and green the PHils. is.

Wowow! i never knew there are hidden cams sa NLEX. Travel is really a breeze pag galing ka sa north. Parang nattravel ko yata ang very start ng NLEX pag galing ako ng Pangasinan. I was there last weekend. Medyo nag wonder ako why the bus seemed to have slowed down when it touched NLEX. I was also wondering why the car ahead of us seems not to be getting any way farther. so malamang kako same lang ang speed. tas nakita ko sa side ng kalsada nakalagay 100 kph. yun pala yun. i tried to count the speed of the bus thru stopwatch at yung mga km posts sa daan. i counted 90 kph. a reasonable speed naman to travel the whole length in less than an hour.

yes, nice plants on the centre median. But remove the concrete blocks, please!:D

totoo iyan, I've found myself travelling slower in the new nlex, because the speed is constant so no spurts of 120 140, you can easily maintain 100 , that way tipid pa when you cruise in OD. Can you imagine this kind of infrastructure all over the country,wow, productivity will go up substantially.

I'd like Edsa to be like that someday. Travel time will surely decrease. It should be a priority why can't the govt. see that.

^^ sounds like you drove in the autobahn plus the speed limits:D (because i've read and heard that there are no speed limits in most parts of the autobahn)

I'd like Edsa to be like that someday. Travel time will surely decrease. It should be a priority why can't the govt. see that.

Exactly...if EDSA is dramatically improved, productivity would skyrocket.

Just imagine the tourists, ofw and balikbayans they mostly traverse Edsa to and from the airport. Imagine what a great relief it would be for them to breeze through it and reach their destination in minutes instead of hours.

^^ sounds like you drove in the autobahn plus the speed limits:D (because i've read and heard that there are no speed limits in most parts of the autobahn)

Actually there is a speed limit in Autobahn, but it says dont go Below 60Kph or something. So the top speed is whatever your car can churn out. :)

Actually there is a speed limit in Autobahn, but it says dont go Below 60Kph or something. So the top speed is whatever your car can churn out. :)

:lol: right...

well, i drive the autobahns in germany daily, and i can tell you, if i would have to cruise at 100 km/hour for more than 50 kms i would fall asleep ! there are speed limits on some parts of autobahns, especially where fall-winds (like on big bridges) or other obstacles (like often accidents) proved to keep the speed tolerably down. otherwise you can go 240 km/hour, if you still can on germany´s overloaded expressways. they are for free for all cars, trucks pay a toll since 1 year now.

speaking of speed limits, what exactly are the speed limits in our highways/tollways?

it ranges from 80-100kph

Even if EDSA is asphalted and interchanged to kingdom come, nothing can change the fact that its just too congested already. EDSA is almost at its limit already...

What is the total length of all Philippines expressways?

high tide or low tide? JK

speaking of speed limits, what exactly are the speed limits in our highways/tollways?

80KM/Hr.

hey you guys... I haven't posted in the longest time. haha! what's up?

anyway, I just found out the MNTC/NLEX has a new website (http://www.tollways.net). was this posted in the forums sometime when I was gone? haha sorry, in case it was. for me though, all along I thought they only had mntc.com, and that one hasn't been updated in quite some time.

go check out the new one... there's a truckload of awesome pictures in the Photo Gallery. the NLEX looks absolutely impressive! I hope the same can be done to the SLEX, and hopefully the SCTEX will turn out to be this good as well.

^ welcome back absent! and thanks for the link. ganda na pala talaga ng NLEX. some parts even look European

Welcome back Lance!:) Where have you been?

Thanks for the link. It has awesome pictures of the highways.

dis expressway is really smooth! it really changed now than when i was a child..
my aunt lives in malolos in bulacan and there's really no hassle driving here its fun and i think d toll is worth it! :rock:

wow those roads are like a dream to look at. of course some motorists really don't care about aesthetics, sometimes I don't when I'm in a hurry, let's hope driving there is as smooth as the lines and curves in the highway

during my first year at studying at manila, i used to commute by riding a bus, so that time they are starting building the expressway and it is always traffic and it took me 2 hours from manila to pampanga, but now that it is done, it is more faster now and it can make it up to 45 minutes or 1 hour..

Metro Pacific nears deal for 40% of Manila North Tollways
By Mary Ann Ll. Reyes
The Philippine Star 12/13/2005

Metro Pacific Corp. is nearing a deal for the acquisition of a 40 percent stake in Manila North Tollways Corp. (MNTC), which holds the 25-year franchise to operate the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) connecting metropolitan Manila to the provinces in the north.

Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. managing director Manuel V. Pangilinan said in an interview that Metro Pacific is "making good progress" in its talks with Egis. He said the two parties have agreed on a purchase price. "We are replicating the same formula of Egis with Leighton," he added.

Leighton Contractors Asia (owned by Leighton International Tollways Corp. of Australia) and Egis Projects (subsidiary of Groupe Egis of France) own 16.5 percent and 13.9 percent of MNTC, respectively. Egis invested $22 million in the project.

Lopez-owned First Philippine Infrastructure Development Corp. (FPIDC) controls the majority stake of 61.5 percent while the Philippine National Construction Corp. (PNCC) has 2.5 percent. FPIDC is the company that holds the stakes of Lopez firms Benpres and First Philippine Holdings Corp. in MNTC.

If Metro Pacific succeeds in convincing Benpres to sell its 10 percent stake, then the former will be able to control majority of MNTC. First Philippine Holdings earlier said it was not selling its shares in MNTC. Benpres, which is undergoing debt restructuring, has identified its stake in MNTC as one of the investments which it is willing to sell to raise funds to pay off its maturing obligations.

"Benpres will sell its stake at the right price," a senior official of the Lopez group told The STAR. But First Philippine Holdings will not follow suit, the official added.

Pangilinan’s group earlier offered to purchase for $40 million the 51-percent stake of First Philippine Holdings in FPIDC. The offer was turned down because it was considered too low. The Lopezes believe that First Holdings’ stake is worth at least $200 million.

FPIDC was incorporated in April 1994. It is a wholly-owned transportation infrastructure subsidiary of First Philippine Holdings and Benpres Holdings Corp., (BHC).

First Pacific’s investments in region include those in Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), Indofood in Indonesia, Metro Pacific, and a minority stake in the Indonesia-controlled company that operates the Skyway. The 9.3-kilometer Skyway is a joint venture of state-owned PNCC and Indonesian firm P.T. Citra Lamtoro Gung Persada through Citra Metro Manila Tollways Corp. Metro Pacific currently owns 10 percent of Citra Metro Manila through Metro Strategic Infrastructure Holdings.

Metro Pacific said it continues to look for investment opportunities in infrastructure projects in the Philippines, particularly toll roads. "Metro Pacific maintains an interest in potential opportunities in Philippine infrastructure projects generally, and in toll roads particularly," the company said earlier.

First Pacific wanted to increase its stake in the Indonesian-controlled company that operates the Skyway in Metro Manila so it could help raise at least P12.5 billion for the upgrade and integration of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) all the way to the Port of Batangas, south of Manila.

While the First Pacific group wants to invest in the upgrade of the existing street-level infrastructure in South Luzon, the former is facing problems convincing the Indonesian shareholders of Citra Metro Manila to go into this venture.

"What should be done is to upgrade the existing street level in South Luzon, extend it to Calamba, and then extend to the STAR tollway," Pangilinan said.

from what i have seen on the NLEX website, this is a very professionally run undertaking and a unique expressway. world standards ! more of this kind of quality product in/for the philippines please. this definately will spur economic and touristic growth in the country !

the new Balintawak Toll Plaza
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/Trip%20To%20Singapore/DSC06304.jpg

NLEX Toll Fee chart
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/Trip%20To%20Singapore/DSC06306.jpg

the four lane parts of NLEX from Balintawak to Sta. Rita Bulacan..
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/Trip%20To%20Singapore/DSC06310.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/Trip%20To%20Singapore/DSC06311.jpg

the Dau Toll Plaza
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v162/pau_p1/Trip%20To%20Singapore/DSC06315.jpg

superb! :applause:

Awesome!:okay: Especially the toll plazas.

Horrors! They are implementing the law!
DEMAND AND SUPPLY By Boo Chanco
The Philippine Star 02/15/2006

Something horrible is happening at the North Luzon Expressway (NLE). They are implementing safety related laws that was passed by our Congress some years ago. In fact, they are collecting and turning over to the Land Transportation Office, about a million and a half pesos a month in fines because they are implementing various traffic laws. Those guys running the NLE must really think they can get away with something as un-Filipino has taking our laws seriously.

Not long after they took over the tollway from government-owned PNCC, they started getting complaints from VIPs because the NLE patrol officers were citing drivers for going over the speed limit, among other violations, including overloading. Congressmen and mayors and assorted local big shots threatened NLE management with investigations and other bureaucratic mayhem if they continued running the NLE like any world-class tollway is supposed to be managed.

One such official who was caught speeding over the limit in his German luxury car complained that it was senseless to build such a nice highway and not let drivers enjoy it. Still, other drivers had to be cited for driving unsafe vehicles or for not knowing the rules of the road. One such driver even wrote to thank the tollway management for letting him know that the leftmost lane is essentially for overtaking and slow moving vehicles should keep to the right.

Last week, truck drivers and operators tried to sabotage traffic flow in the tollway as they protested the gall of NLE management in implementing Republic Act 8794, which limits the loads of cargo vehicles and sets down penalties for overloading. The truckers were filled with righteous indignation, because they said, in the entire country, it is only the NLE that is implementing the overloading law along its 85 km stretch.

And with the help of some local officials, they tried to get Malacañang to intercede. The truckers insisted that the law should be ignored. That’s good reasoning. Just because a law was ignored because the agencies that should implement it – the Land Transportation Office and the Philippine National Police – we should all act as if the law doesn’t exist.

In fact, LTO itself estimates that 85 percent of all cargo trucks are overloaded – a fact that the truckers do not dispute. One can only imagine that the law was not being ignored for free… in all likelihood, alternative fines are being collected by law enforcement officers at rates lower than the fines set by RA 8794. What’s so strange about that? This is the Pilipins.

And RA 8794 is not that strange. It is even generous, compared to similar laws abroad. The maximum permissible truck load that the law sets for local trucks is 13.5 tons per axle, the highest limit anywhere in the world. By comparison, US trucks have a load limit per axle of 9.1 tons. The European Union has a recommended limit of 11.5 tons. The next-highest is France, with a limit to 12 tons per axle. In fact, before RA 8794 was passed in 2002, RA 4136 (passed in 1965) set the maximum load limit for cargo vehicles at a much lighter eight tons per axle.

Why is the law’s implementation so important? Overloading has been blamed by the UP National Center of Transportation Studies for 120,000 of the average of 970,000 road accidents that happen in a year. And road accidents, the same center says, cost P105.2 billion yearly, or 2.6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

Overloading is also one of the reasons why our road network in this country is in constant need of repair. For the NLE, non implementation of the load limit would invalidate the guarantee of the foreign construction company that built it. Safety in the tollway would also be seriously compromised.

Oh well… sooner rather than later, we have to stop thinking in terms of the usual chaotic lawlessness that is typical of our streets. And if the NLE is teaching our motorists to respect our laws, all I can say is, it certainly is just about time.

^^:lol: Thats great!

well... I hope the NLE keeps this up... :D

just goto show that people here would rather break the law and profit rather than follow the law.. such a bunch of close minded people..

yeah good article. i hope the laws get enforced everywhere not just in nlex. And those big shots better take a bitter pill they're not exempted.

I just love the NLEX, I always take it going to Field Ave. in Clark when I'm in Manila. But it's pretty expensive now compared to years back.

Why is NLEX only 2-lane on Google Earth? Did it get expanded?

^^ Yeah, it's so wide!

Those google earth shots were taken before its major upgrade.

(Published on Page B2 of the June 16, 2006 issue of the Philippine Daily Inquirer)

IT HAS only 48 regular employees -- nine officers, 17 managers and 12 supervisors to order around 10 rank-and-file personnel -- yet its first year of operations has cranked out P1.5 billion in profits on revenues of P5.1 billion.

In these tough, competitive times, that represents a clean, devaluation-proof 29.4-percent margin. Welcome to Manila North Tollways Corp., the Lopez-controlled developer and operator of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and related arteries that is now the object of buy-in affections from Manuel V. Pangilinan and his Metro Pacific Group.

Another Lopez affiliate, which operates and maintains the NLEX proper, turned in P217.5 million in profits on first year revenues of P1.3 billion, or a respectable 16.7-percent spread.

Despite the healthy returns, First Philippine Holdings Corp. chairman Oscar Lopez told shareholders Wednesday that traffic numbers were still "below expectations," partly as a result of the higher toll rates and more so because of soaring fuel prices.

Out of the P5.1 billion in revenues, P3.4 billion came from tollway fees; the balance came from the so-called access fees paid by oil companies that established gas stations and strip malls ever since the Lopezes took over the 84-kilometer expressway and discarded the government's "pay-peanuts, get-potholes" operating philosophy.

Next year, MNTC will begin work on Phase 2, which will connect the NLEX with the C-5 highway and the South Luzon Expressway, and eventually link up the Luzon arterial backbone with the Subic-Clark-Tarlac road, another Lopez project, and the US-era McArthur Highway.

If needed, First Philippine Holdings still has plenty of wiggle room to raise debt capital to match a buy-in offer from the Metro Pacific Group to acquire the 32.9-percent stake held by foreign partners.

Still, with or without a hostile suitor, First Philippine Holdings shareholders can expect cash dividends from the tollway operations by yearend, Lopez promised.

More would be forthcoming should the company also win the management and operation of the Clark-Subic-Tarlac segment, and the C-5 connecting road, as well as other large-scale infrastructure projects.

Together with power-generating conglomerate First Gen Corp., "we have a business base that is capable of generating attractive profits and cash flow even when one major component such as Meralco (Manila Electric Co.) has a difficult year," Lopez said, as First Philippine Holdings celebrated its 20th year of return and rehabilitation from the Ferdinand Marcos era.

With the ouster of the Marcoses in 1986 and the return of the conglomerate to the family that also controls ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., First Philippine Holdings has enjoyed a 21-percent compounded annual growth in the past two decades.

Given its heft and experience, First Philippine Holdings is now setting its sights on the regional market, with subsidiary Philippine Electric Co. supplying locally made electric transformers, first to Guam, under the "Cooper" brand.

(Moral of the story: You don't want to pay taxes and tolls to an incompetent government, fine; now, go and hand over your money to the Lopezes, the Indonesians, the Malaysians, the French and the Australians.)

The national gov't has allocated about75B for the start of the North Luzon (http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=regions03_june19_2006) mega-region project. News said that the funding will be sourcing fron the succeeding budget proposals as well as from gains fronm the E-Vat and that it will be released in three batches of 25B annually over the nexe 3 years.

The palace said that the 3 other mega-regions will also be funded bythe National gov't and will be announced by the President when she visits them in the next few weeks before the SONA.

Any information about NLEX extension plans from Dau/Sta. Inez up to Tarlac City? Traffic in Mabalacat town is horrendous. Can you imagine having a fast, smooth and cool driving from Balintawak to Dau then all of a sudden you will encounter a heavy load of traffic in the end?