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San Miguel Corp. soft-opened on April 11 two lanes of the Skyway Extension’s northbound section for Class 1 vehicles following structural completion and asphalt-laying in March
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Use of the new segment will be toll-free for a limited time
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The section links directly to the elevated Skyway System, allowing motorists from Laguna, Batangas, and Cavite to bypass the Alabang viaduct
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Skyway Extension’s northbound section is a four-kilometer, three-lane expansion that will allow an additional capacity of 4,500 vehicles per hour
Two of the three lanes of the northbound section of the Skyway Extension were soft-opened on April 11 and will be toll-free for motorists for a limited time, according to concessionaire San Miguel Corp. (SMC).
For now the lanes may only be used by Class 1 vehicles.
“This section provides a direct link to the elevated Skyway System for motorists coming from provinces such as Laguna, Batangas, and Cavite as it allows them to bypass the Alabang viaduct, reducing congestion in the area,” SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said in a statement.
The northbound section of the Skyway Extension is a four-kilometer (km), three-lane expansion project that will allow an additional capacity of 4,500 vehicles per hour.
READ: Northbound Skyway extension structure complete, asphalt laying starts
Those coming from South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) or Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway (MCX) can go up the ramp at Susana Heights, and go directly to Makati, Manila, Skyway Stage 3, all the way to Quezon City and North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).
Ang earlier said this would allow motorists to reach NLEX in just 25 to 30 minutes instead of two to three hours, and to bypass the usual traffic chokepoints such as Alabang, Magallanes, and EDSA.
The Skyway Extension project, conceptualized and fully funded by SMC, started in late 2019. The northbound section stretches 3.99 km from Susana Heights to Sucat. It is seen to decongest SLEX and Skyway at-grade traffic by diverting motorists straight to the elevated Skyway.
Originally set for completion in December 2020, the project was affected by delays and work limitations due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the implementation of community quarantines starting the middle of March last year.
Meanwhile, the project’s southbound section, which spans 3.8 km, is already 52.31% done, with target completion set for July this year.
