SAN MIGUEL CORP. (SMC) inaugurated on Sunday a two-lane 180-meter long steel ramp that connects the Alabang viaduct to the Metro Manila Skyway Project and reopened the third “at-grade” lane of the Skyway.
SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang promised last month that congestion along South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) will be resolved by Dec. 1.
Mr. Ang, Secretary Mark A. Villar of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Secretary Arthur P. Tugade of the Department of Transportation (DoTr) , and Mayor Jaime D. Fresnedi of Muntinlupa City led the opening ceremony for the lanes and the new ramp on the Alabang flyover Sunday morning.
SMC manages Skyway Operations and Maintenance Corp. (SOMCO), which is currently undertaking the extension project for the Skyway system, which is leading to congestion on SLEx.
In his speech, Mr. Ang noted that motorists from Muntinlupa, Las Piñas, Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas had a hard time in the past two months due to the ongoing skyway extension project.
“Alam nyo pinatawag ako sa Malacañang dahil sa traffic na ito, bakit ba raw nagka-traffic itong ginagawa dito… Pinaliwanag ko po, sabi ko sa Presidente, ‘Bago pa man nasimulan ‘yan sampung kilometro ‘yung traffic… Pero totoo hong nagcause ng traffic, pero pinapangako ko sa inyo na matatapos po ‘yan by December 1st (I was summoned to Malacañang because of the traffic this project was generating, but I told the President that even before we started the project vehicles were backed up 10 kilometers… But it is true that the project has made things worse, and I committed to finish by Dec. 1),’” he said.
The current project being undertaken by SMC is a P10-billion extension in both directions of the skyway from the toll plaza of the main line linking to Susana Heights. Construction of the four-kilometer elevated viaduct started in July and was initially scheduled for completion by December 2020.
Once completed, the project’s three new northbound lanes will accommodate an additional 4,500 vehicles per hour. The two additional southbound lanes will accommodate an additional 3,000 vehicles per hour.
“Mga kababayan, ginagawa po naming ang lahat para mapabilis ang trabaho, at mapaganda ang daloy ng trapiko. Mahirap, pero kailangan gawin. Hindi na po uubra ang reme-remedyo lamang. Ang kailangan po natin, pang-matagalang solusyon (We are doing everything to speed up the work and improve vehicle flow. It’s difficult but necessary. Band-aid solutions are no longer sufficient. We need long-term measures),” Mr. Ang said. — Arjay L. Balinbin
