MANILA, Philippines — Motorists passing through the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) and South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) may have to pay additional fees soon as the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) finalizes the toll hikes for both expressways.
TRB executive director Alvin Carullo, in a recent interview with the media in Ortigas, said that another round of toll hikes would be implemented as early as next month following the petitions lodged by tollway operators Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) and San Miguel Corp. (SMC).
The application for toll increase at NLEx, operated by MPTC, is under review by the TRB secretariat and has reached an “advanced stage,” according to Carullo. New toll fees could be implemented by next month, he added.
Based on the toll fee matrix, motorists traveling within the NLEx open system will pay an additional P7 to P19 while those passing through the closed system will be charged P33 to P98 more.
READ: SLEx, NLEx eyeing barrier-less tollways by November, says Tulfo
The open system covers travel from Navotas, Valenzuela, and Caloocan to Marilao, Bulacan, while the closed system includes Bocaue, Bulacan, and Sta. Ines, Mabalacat City.
July implementation for SLEx
For SLEx, which is operated by SMC, Carullo said the toll hike petition might be implemented by July.
The toll increase at SLEx will amount to P10 to P30 for motorists traveling from Alabang to Calamba. The added fee for motorists traversing Calamba to Sto. Tomas, Batangas, ranges from P4 to P8.
Carullo said that granting toll hikes would be crucial in enabling tollway operators that invest in the maintenance and expansion of expressways to have sustainable operations.
“We cannot deny all the petitions for toll rate increase precisely because they (tollway operators) also have to comply with their lenders,” he explained.
At present, the TRB is also conducting a dry run for contactless toll collection, which started in September last year. Cashless payment schemes at toll plazas are seen to make transactions quicker and seamless, making the motorist experience easier.
In 2020, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) required cashless or contactless transactions via RFID stickers to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19.
Due to complaints about electronic glitches, however, the DOTr issued an addendum permitting vehicles without RFID stickers to use the tollways and requiring cash lanes at all toll plazas.