INFRA INSPECTION. DPWH Secretary Mark Villar (center), NLEX Corporation chief operating officer (COO) Raul Ignacio (left) and vice president for Tollways Development and Engineering Nemesio Castillo (right) inspect the progress of the ongoing construction of NLEX Harbor Link (C3-R10 Section) that will be partially opened to the public in February. The elevated expressway will provide direct access between R10 in Navotas City and NLEX. (Photo by Manny Balbin)
CITY OF MALOLOS, Bulacan -- A section of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) Harbor Link Segment 10, the elevated expressway that will provide direct access between R10 in Navotas City and NLEX, is scheduled for partial opening next month.
Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar said on Friday the project, which is envisioned to boost trade performance and lead to on-time delivery of goods to different inland destinations in Central and North Luzon, particularly in Bulacan, Pampanga and Nueva Ecija, is now 75 percent complete.
“We are on track to open the C3 to Dagat-Dagatan Avenue by February 15 and the entire C3-R10 Section by March to help decongest major roads such as Edsa and C5," Villar said.
He said 3,000 workers are working 24/7 just to meet the February 15 completion date.
“With the full completion of the project, we expect to reduce travel time from Port Area to NLEX to just 10 minutes,” Villar said.
Featured as one of the legacy projects of the Duterte administration, the 2.6-kilometer C3-R10 Section from Caloocan Interchange, C3 Road, Caloocan City to Radial Road 10, Navotas City will connect to the 5.65-kilometer NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 that passes through Karuhatan, Valenzuela City, Governor Pascual Avenue in Malabon City, and 5th Avenue/C3 Road, Caloocan City.
“We are very excited to fulfill our vision of decongesting Metro Manila traffic, which is one of the major thrusts of the administration’s infrastructure program,” Villar said.
Apart from alleviating the daily traffic woes of motorists and commuters, he said the project will significantly benefit the transport logistics industry as cargo trucks will have 24/7 access from the port to NLEX, sparing them from the truck ban and congested local roads.
“Now that the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 C3-R10 Section is about to be completed, we are aiming to contribute more to the productive capacity of the economy, generate jobs, and ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila,” NLEX Corporation president and general manager J. Luigi Bautista said. (PNA)
