NALEX, SALEX construction may start this quarter — TRB

THE Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) said the construction of San Miguel Corp.’s (SMC) two toll road projects may start within the first quarter. 

“[For] NALEX and SALEX, the TRB targets to issue and approve the final engineering design and issue the notice to proceed. The construction will proceed in the first quarter,” TRB Executive Director Alvin A. Carullo told reporters last week. 

The two projects — the Northern Access Link Expressway (NALEX), valued at P148.30 billion, and the P152.39-billion Southern Access Link Expressway (SALEX) — are both being undertaken by SMC through SMC Northern Access Link Expressway Corp. and SMC Southern Access Link Expressway Corp., respectively. 

NALEX is divided into two phases: the first phase is a proposed 136.4-kilometer expressway connecting Metro Manila, the New Manila International Airport, and Central Luzon, while the second phase involves a demand-driven expansion from Pampanga to Tarlac City. 

SALEX is a proposed 40.65-kilometer elevated expressway network, which includes the Shoreline Express and three Metro Manila Skyway Stage extensions, according to information from the TRB website. 

The project proponents submitted their final engineering design last year, which the TRB targets to approve within the first quarter.

Mr. Carullo said Segment 1 of the South Luzon Expressway Toll Road 5 (SLEX TR5) is also expected to begin construction within the first quarter. This project is also being undertaken by SMC. 

In November last year, the TRB said it expected the implementation of these projects within the first quarter of 2025. 

The SLEX TR5 Segment 1 alignment begins at the termination point of SLEX Phase 2 in Mayao, Lucena City, Quezon, and ends in Gumaca, Quezon. 

The project is designed to have four interchanges and is valued at P28.15 billion, the TRB said. — Ashley Erika O. Jose