MPTC Bares Plan for Holy Week Traffic

The Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) is expecting a 10-percent surge in traffic for the Holy Week exodus.

For one, North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) President and General Manager Luigi Bautista said that they are expecting around 300,000 vehicles daily to ply their tollways for the Lenten season.

During normal days, Bautista said that the NLEX receives 250,000 motorists. But in Holy Wednesday last year, they recorded as much as around 330,000 volume.

"We are ready to accommodate that 15-percent surge," Bautista told CARMUDI PHILIPPINES.

Meanwhile, Cavitex, on the other hand, is a different story.

On normal days, traffic reaches 150,000-160,000 a day. But on a Holy Wednesday, it peaks to 175,000, the goes down at the rest of the week.

To mitigate the effects of the traffic surge, MPTC launched the expanded 'Safe Trip Mo, Sagot Ko' (SMSK) program.

Now on its 10th year, the SMSK will activate 700 tellers and patrol officers to boost the traffic management and toll collection services.

During peak hours, toll collection points will increase by 50 percent, with the volume expected to bottleneck in Balintawak, Mindanao Avenue, Bocaue, Tarlac, San Miguel, and Tipo toll plazas.

On April 15-22, the traffic management teams will adopt longer working hours in anticipation of the high volume of motorists plying NLEX. Cavitex will do a similar move.

MPTC and its partners will set up SMSK motorists camps and provide free calls, WiFi, drinking water, basic mechanic services and first aid treatment in designated locations. The SMSK will also provide free towing services to the nearest exit for Class 1 vehicles on the said dates from 6 AM to 6 PM.

Those who can monitor the traffic via Facebook may do so as the real-time situation can be viewed the NLEX Corporation Facebook page.

Further, all roadworks in the NLEX, SCTEX, and Cavitex will be suspended beginning April 12 up to the 22nd.

The Customer Service Hot Line (3-5000) and Customer Service Centers will be available to serve motorists except on April 19 and 21.

Meanwhile, MPTC Chief Communication Officer Junji Quimbo said that with current projects such as the NLEX Harbor Link currently underway, travel time would be lessened.

"Those who are Manila-bound may use the Harbor Link Road, Caloocan-bound may use Balintawak Exit, and those going to the east may utilize the Mindanao Avenue Exit," he told CARMUDI Philippines in a separate interview. "In short, traffic will be diverted efficiently."