ANOTHER seven kilometers of the toll-free Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) project is targeted for opening within the first half (H1) of 2023, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced on Thursday.
The additional 7-km segment stretches from the Guimba-Aliaga Road intersection to the San Juan interchange in Nueva Ecija, DPWH said in a statement.
This connects to the existing 18-km section, opened to motorists in July last year, which starts at the connection of the SCTEX/TPLEX (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway/Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway) toll roads in Tarlac City.
The CLLEX is a 30-km public infrastructure project that serves as an east-west link for the expressway network of the Central Luzon region, located immediately north of the capital.
“This project is part of the government’s vision of easing traffic congestion and will shorten the usual travel time of 70 minutes between Tarlac City and Cabanatuan City to just 20 minutes,” DPWH said.
CLLEX is one of the key infrastructures with funding assistance from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). It is included in the Luzon Spine Expressway Network projects, which aims to reduce travel time by 50% between north to south of mainland Luzon, or between the regions of Ilocos and Bicol.
Apart from the main highway, DPWH is also constructing three interchanges in Zaragoza, Aliaga and San Juan to allow motorists from the secondary and provincial roads to access CLLEX.
DPWH Senior Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain said the project has faced challenges, including bad weather conditions, right of way issues, difficulty in the transport of construction materials, and the pandemic restrictions in the past two years. — MSJ