MANILA, Philippines — The Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3, an elevated toll road linking the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) and the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx), has been completed “ahead of schedule,” Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar said Tuesday.
With the completion of the 17.93 toll road, travel time between Buendia in Makati City to Balintawak in Quezon City will be cut to 15 to 20 minutes, Villar said.
“Skyway Stage 3 — one of 23 projects under the EDSA Decongestion Program — is completed ahead of schedule. President Duterte fulfills promise to cut travel time from Makati to QC to only 15 to 20 minutes,” Villar said in a Facebook post.
The Skyway Stage 3 connects the southern end of NLEx in Balintawak in Quezon City to the entry point of the SLEx Luzon in Makati City.
According to San Miguel Corporation president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang, construction on the elevated expressway was officially completed over the weekend, beating the original deadline of October 31.
“I’m happy to announce that the whole structure of Skyway 3 is now complete. With this, Skyway 2 in Buendia is now officially extended all the way to the North Luzon Expressway. After many challenges this project faced in previous years, the dream of connecting north and south and providing an alternative to EDSA is now a reality,” Ang said in a statement.
The expressway, however, cannot be opened to the public yet, as finishing works, such as the proper curing of asphalt, have been delayed by continuous and heavy rains. [ac]