We note with pride that through the intercession of Zambales Governor Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., who chairs both the Regional Development Council’s Sectoral Committee on Infrastructure Development and the Regional Peace and Order Council in Region 3, the Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) will soon see completion.
The CLLEX is an important infrastructure project that will interconnect strategic areas in Central Luzon, pushing economic growth into new heights.
It was designed to connect with the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx) south of the region and the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEx) in the north and provide an important east-west link.
Construction of the CLLEx initially started in May 2016 and consisted of five contract packages, three of which have already been completed.
Upon completion, the P11.8-billion expressway will shorten travel time between Tarlac City and Cabanatuan City from 70 minutes to 20 minutes.
Construction of the expressway, however, was stopped when the project encountered delays in the payment of right-of-way claims for properties along the 35.7-kilometer alignment.
Complaining landowners have put up barriers along the road so that construction equipment could not move.
Governor Ebdane, however, helped in facilitating a series of dialogues between the government and the property owners who were affected by the road project. This resulted in the plan to resume construction of the road link in the second quarter of this year.
“The project already has the green light now, as the affected landowners have already dismantled the barricades they have set up along the highway. So, we expect construction to resume in the second quarter,” Ebdane said.
“We met with the concerned landowners and farmers, and we managed to solve the problem out of the box,” added the governor, who once served as Secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
#WeTakeAStand #OpinYon #DPWH #CLLEx