Work starts on phase 2 of Manila-Cavitex link

Cavitex Infrastructure Corp. (CIC) is aiming to start the construction of the second phase of Manila-Cavite Expressway-C5 Link Segment 2 this first quarter, with the target of opening it to the public before the year ends.

On Thursday, the concession holder of Cavitex and Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) unit announced they had inked a deal with the China Road and Bridge Corp. (CRBC) to work on the phase 2 works at the toll road.

The 1.9-kilometer (km) Cavitex-C5 Link Segment 2 is a lane expressway that will link Cavitex R-1 (Coastal Road) from the Parañaque toll plaza to Sucat via the R-1 interchange. This is expected to reduce travel time between Sucat Road and Cavitex R-1 by 10 minutes.

“This is something we cannot do alone, hence our search for a contractor that would be up for the task-delivering world-class quality infrastructure for our motorists within our timeline. We are glad that our new partner [CRBC] took on the challenge,” CIC president and general manager Raul Ignacio said.

CRBC has experience in construction of several infrastructure projects, such as roads, bridges, ports, tunnels, railways, dredging and airports. It was also involved in the building of Central Luzon Link Expressway Phase 1 Package 2, the Estrella-Pantaleon bridge and the Binondo-Intramuros bridge.

In its entirety, the Cavitex-C5 Link is a 7.7-km lane expressway connecting Cavitex-R1 to the C-5 Road in Taguig City. It is designed to serve 40,000 vehicles daily.

The toll road seeks to reduce travel time to Makati City and Taguig from Parañaque City, Las Pinas City and Cavite province by 45 minutes.

Apart from Cavitex, MPTC’s portfolio includes the Cavite-Laguna Expressway, North Luzon Expressway (NLEx), the Subic-Clark Tarlac Expressway, the NLEx Connector Road, and the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway in Cebu.

Recently, the tollway firm announced that the Caloocan-España portion of the 8-km NLEx Connector was set to open on March 27. It is 98 percent complete.

The toll road’s first segment is expected to reduce traffic congestion on España Boulevard, Abad Santos Avenue, Rizal Avenue and Lacson Avenue.