MNTC rebuilds Subic-Tipo roadway

The rehabilitation of the Subic Freeport Expressway is expected to be finished by August this year.

The Manila North Tollways Corp., which is overseeing the works, said the 8.6-kilometer road “has served its full 10-year design life” but will be restored to its original state as MNTC gives it a new lease on life. MNTC is also the builder and concessionaire of the 84-kilometer North Luzon Expressway.

With 40 percent of the job already done, MNTC engineers are optimistic they will hit their target completion date on August 15.

The SFEX was constructed from 1995 to 1996 and was completed in time for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Meeting in Subic. The road was opened to traffic in November 1996 and has not undergone any major pavement repair since then, except for routine maintenance works.

MNTC senior vice president for operations Luigi L. Bautista said because of effective routine maintenance, the roadway has endured the daily traffic pounding on its carriageway. “This is the first time that we are implementing such rehabilitation work,” Bautista said.

The project included the rehabilitation of the “heavily traveled” eastbound lanes. This involved the removal of existing asphalt pavement and, if necessary, the structural base material may also be replaced at pre-determined locations.

“After the rehab of the base material at specific locations, a complete overlay of the entire 8.6-kilometer stretch of the SFEX would be carried out and to complete the repair, new thermoplastic pavement marking would be installed,” Bautista said. Journal online