TPLEX to cut Manila-Baguio travel time three to four hours

Tourist arrivals up 

BAGUIO CITY – More tourists are expected to arrive in this premier tourist resort of the north, this summer with nearing completion of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) construction.

Rep. Nicasio M. AlipingJr, bared this Wednesday as work on the last portion of the construction plan started recently.

Once completed, TPLEX is expected to cut travel time from the National Capital Region and Baguio from six hours to a little over three hours.

TPLEX is a public-private partnership (PPP) endeavor whereby a consortium will undertake the development of each toll section of the highway and once the section has been completed it is turned over back to the government.

The government in turn will grant the developer a franchise to operate and maintain on behalf of the government the entire stretch of the toll road under a long term concession agreement.

“This is, after all, is what the Baguio-Boracay Task Force was tasked to do,” Aliping said, adding that the task force was created to ensure that problems faced by the two top tourist destinations of the country will be addressed by government.

However, Aliping said the government must also ensure that the number of tourists coming to Baguio will not put too much pressure on the city especially when it comes to vehicles coming from other parts of the country.

He said Baguio experienced an unusually large number of cars on city streets last Christmas break.

This caused hour long traffic jams on roads leading to tourist sites of the city and earned the ire of Baguio residents as well as  tourists who had to endure gridlocks.

“We will have to find other means in order to minimize traffic in the city,” Aliping said.

One way is to construct multi-level parking buildings in and around the city.

“We are studying the possibility of constructing an underground parking system either at Melvin Jones or any other place to help ease traffic,” Aliping said.

But, he was quick to add, these structures must first be backed by a feasibility study which will also determine the acceptability of such a project as well as its impact on the fragile environment of the city.

The last phase of the TPLEX construction is expected to be completed by the third or fourth quarter of the year.

The 88.85 km 4-lane highway starts at Tarlac City, Tarlac, where it connects with the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway and will end at Rosario, La Union.

It had its “soft launch” On October 31, 2013 when the first section (from Tarlac City to Gerona, Tarlac) was completed.