Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark A. Villar led on Wednesday, October 30, 2019 the partial opening of the Laguna segment of Cavite-Laguna Expressway covering Mamplasan Barrier onto Santa Rosa-Tagaytay Interchange.
Villar said, “We all know that UNDAS is a time we all pay respects to family and friends who have passed on, and with November 1 falling on a Friday, I’m sure many of our kababayans will take advantage of the time to do some family bonding and go on a road trip. I only see benefits in opening CALAX even on a single lane basis to decongest Laguna Boulevard, Aguinaldo Highway. We are at 90% completion, the remaining 10% of the works is being fast tracked while in operations.”
“Approximately 10,000 cars are expected to enter and exit through the 2 access points, Mamplasan entry for the westbound vehicles and Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay Entry for the eastbound vehicles. This section will be about 10 minutes to drive. A big cut on travel time compared to the 45-minutes it currently takes to travel Mamplasan to Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay road”, added Villar.
Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) subsidiary MP CALA Holdings, Inc. led by President and General Manager Bobby Bontia said, “We will operate today, October 30 until 10PM. For the daily access time we agreed with DPWH that it will be Sunday to Thursday 6:00AM to 6:00PM and giving extended time on weekends, Friday to Saturday 6:00AM to 10:00PM. This will only be temporary, until finish the remaining works for this first segment before December, by then full access of the other interchanges and 24-hour use shall be possible.”
The 45-kilometer CALAX is designed to be a 4-lane, tolled expressway that will connect CAVITEX in Kawit to South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) at their Mamplasan Interchange in Binan Laguna. CALAX will have interchanges in 8 locations, namely: Kawit, Imus Open Canal, Governor’s Drive, Aguinaldo Highway, Silang, Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay, Laguna Blvd., Technopark, and a Toll Barrier before SLEX.
It will also showcase technologically advanced features such as Automatic License Plate Recognition System enabling barrier-less entry to CALAX, IP Based Speed Detection Cameras strategically installed, and High Definition CCTV cameras to cover the entire stretch of the expressway to ensure safe and efficient travel by the motorists.