New toll road project to cut travel time from Manila to Quezon

QUEZON, Philippines – If things go according to plan, President Benigno Aquino III will no longer spend several hours on the road just to reach Quezon province.

Aquino, during a briefing on the South Luzon Expressway (Slex) Toll Road 4 (TR4) in Tiaong, Quezon, joked about consistently missing meals because of the long travel time from Manila.

“Sa tuwing naiimbitahan po ako na magtungo rito, madalas ay tapos na pong maghapunan ang mga nag-imbita (Every time I am invited to go here, I arrive after the organizers had dinner),” the President told an amused crowd at Tiaong, Quezon.

He pointed out that Quezon is just as far as Tarlac City, his hometown, from Metro Manila but while it takes only an hour and a half to reach Tarlac, which is 107 kilometers away from Manila, it takes him more than five hours to reach Quezon, which is only 98 kilometers away.

Aquino welcomed the construction of a four-lane, 58 kilometer-road from Sto. Tomas, Batangas, to Lucena, Quezon. The P13.1 billion project aims to cut the travel time between the two towns from four hours to just one hour.

TR4, which will be completed in 2019, will not only make transportation easier, it is also expected to boost trade and commerce in the area, Aquino said.

While the project was first promised by former President Ferdinand Marcos it was only approved during the term of former President Fidel Ramos.

“Bahagi lamang itong SLEX TR 4 ng isinusulong nating High Standard Highway Network o ang pagkakaroon ng maayos at tuloy-tuloy na road transport network (The Slex TR4 is part of our High Standard Highway Network or a continuous road transport network),” Aquino said.

Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson, in his speech, said the TR4 is among the big ticket projects of the government that should be completed in the next several years. The other projects he mentioned were the controversial Cavite-Laguna Expressway and the Laguna Lake Expressway Dike.

Aquino thanked the South Luzon Tollway Corporation, headed by businessman Ramon Ang, for its initiative in pursuing the project, which will be managed by the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) – Toll Regulatory Board (TRB).

In his speech, Ang said South Luzon Tollway and San Miguel Corporation will continue to “invest in the construction of modern toll roads and highways that are at par with our neighbors in Asia.”

“Once we finish this tollway the peace and order situation in Quezon and Bicol will improve considerably,” he added. Ang said the expressway extension will encourage new businesses and will also increase the land value in the area.

The first section of the project, which will be completed in 2017, will be from Sto. Tomas to Macban, Laguna (10.51 kilometers), the second from Macban to San Pablo, Laguna (12.2 km), the third from San Pablo to Tiaong (8.1 km), the fourth from Tiaong to Candelaria, Quezon (14.4 km) and the fifth from Candelaria to Lucena (12.31 km).