Philippine expressway system

[Chris]

Looking at those Skyway videos: the road obviously is not finished. Why open it before it is completed? It seems unsafe and impractical, this way workers have to deal with traffic driving through their construction zone. Work can be completed much faster if there is no traffic present. In some parts of the road there are no road markings at all, it seems unclear whether traffic is supposed to run on one or two lanes.

[TheStranger]

Looking at those Skyway videos: the road obviously is not finished. Why open it before it is completed? It seems unsafe and impractical, this way workers have to deal with traffic driving through their construction zone. Work can be completed much faster if there is no traffic present. In some parts of the road there are no road markings at all, it seems unclear whether traffic is supposed to run on one or two lanes.

- San Miguel seems to be planning on using the evening hours to complete the work.  Not saying whether that is the best possible approach, but I think it dates back to...
- Promises from October from SMC that the road would be opened in December.  There were delays due to rainstorms but they got it soft-opened in December 29th.  For that matter, the project itself is way behind the original 2014 schedule of 36-month completion, and behind schedule for a mid-2020 opening due to the Pandacan fire earlier that year.

Besides those two thoughts, some other ideas come to mind as well:

- wanting to already get people used to the traffic patterns, i.e. getting as many cars already to stop using EDSA if their destinations are not in Cubao or Ortigas.  This seems to have already been accomplished.  (Though EDSA itself is different due to one lane in each direction being reserved now for bus rapid transit, the EDSA Carousel as it is called.)  despite the 1 month free toll, the Del Monte tollbooths northbound are operational with gates - probably to also reiterate to drivers that they do need Autosweep RFID installed to use Skyway Stage 3, and that the stretch from Quezon Avenue to Sgt. Rivera is not uninterrupted.

- testing out how much the existing ramps on Skyway Stage 3 can handle.  The only one that is a design issue is the Quezon Avenue interchange and that seems to be a combination of ROW issues that are beyond San Miguel's scope at the moment, and other ramps (Bayani/E. Rodriguez offramp and onramp southbound, San Juan-Santa Mesa Bridge onramp and Landargun Street onramp northbound) not being open yet, and it does seem as annoying as that offramp congestion is - with up to a half hour wait - that it is still a time savings northbound compared to staying on EDSA to get to Quezon City.

- also testing to see how well the road handles the weight load of regular commute traffic, so far so good.  The flooding problems near Balintawak have mostly been discovered via commuter Youtube videos.

- Given that SMC is a private enterprise, I don't know if their social media team would admit to it but the Youtube videos from regular Filipinos serve as a form of viral advertising for the highway.  (This is after all a country in which the NLEX tollway has sponsored a pro basketball team!)  Many of the videos involve someone using a stopwatch to time the Buendia-Balintawak drive or some variation of such.  From personal experience, I can vouch for EDSA between Magallanes and Balintawak being a 2 hour parking lot in the past, so the idea of a through freeway is so novel for Metro Manila residents compared to the congestion they've endured in Manila city limits and along EDSA.

[TheStranger]

A video of a nighttime drive from Cavitex to Roxas Boulevard to R10 and finally the NLEX Harbor Link (to Smart Connect Interchange). Can definitely see how the NLEX Harbor Link is a little wider and faster than Skyway Stage 3.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4j1m1Fluvw

---

Short commute trip on Skyway Stage 3 from Quezon Avenue to Makati.  Most notable sight, at 4:22 in this video, is that this might be the first good view of the E. Rodriguez/Bayani Street ramp from southbound Skyway in Quezon City, the offramp does look to be one lane wide.

The notch at 9:56 looks to be for the future ramp from southbound Skyway to northbound NLEX Connector.

11:04 is another new ramp under construction, a very wide (two lane?) ramp that is likely part of the Nagtahan interchange - not just to provide access to Mabini Bridge, but the planned Pasig River Expressway west segment heading to Intramuros and Anda Circle from Plaza Azul.  (This could also be a future toll plaza)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSo0Hw7Wm64

---

All seven lanes of the Skyway Stage 3 mainline to be opened in a week (January 14)
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/smc-prepares-skyway-stage-3-000000304.html

[TheStranger]

Some new photos of the Metro Manila Skyway from Skyscrapercity user thehighwayadvocate:
https://www.skyscrapercity.com/threads/metro-manila-skyway.1492516/post-171436723
- Skyway Extension work in Alabang


- Lane striping on the Skyway Stage 3 stretch past Buendia Avenue in Makati


- Future offramp to Tomas Claudio Street & NLEX Connector, Pandacan, Manila


- Left onramp to northbound Skyway from Quezon Avenue, Quezon City.  (The ramp actually crosses over Maria Clara Street before reaching the expressway)


- Approaching the double decker setup for the Del Monte toll plaza


- Under-construction offramp from NB Skyway Stage 3 to C-3/5th Avenue near A. Bonifacio Avenue.  This may possibly be part of San Miguel Corporation's "Skyway Stage 3 Extension - C-3 - R-10 - Anda Circle" project (as seen in the NMIA map here - https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EJT3EDHUEAA41lG?format=jpg&name=medium ) - much of that SMC corridor is already duplicated by NLEX's proposed Port Link Expressway (from Anda Circle to Navotas) and the existing NLEX Harbor Link (from Navotas to Caloocan) but the segment from Harbor Link east to here is entirely SMC's own planning.

- Skyway northern terminus towards NLEX, at the Libis Baesa Footbridge in Caloocan.  Note the pillars in place for a proposed northern extension, likely to New Manila International Airport based on San Migel Corporation's NMIA road planning map.


- Southbound onramp from NLEX to Skyway Stage 3, with the 6-destination distance sign.

[Chris]

An official opening of the Skyway stage 3 is scheduled for January 14:

http://pageone.ph/skyway-stage-3-prepares-for-official-opening-sets-temporary-closures-for-addl-roadworks/

Ang earlier said that the Skyway 3 will be toll-free for motorists for one month and an initial four lanes will be opened. SMC will formally open all seven lanes of the 18-kilometer stretch from Buendia, Makati to NLEX on January 14.

[TheStranger]

Nicely filmed southbound drive from Balintawak to NAIA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EtShtq1_zo

Northbound daytime drive along Skyway Stage 3 with English commentary!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdiksI5ue8Q

---

NLEX Connector construction in Caloocan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX1R0v2qIJg

[bing101]

Pinoy Joyride released a new video clinching every major Expressway in the Luzon Philippines area.

[noelbotevera]

My family's roots lie in the Philippines - mostly in the Manila Metro. Actually, my great grandfather even ran the Bureau of Internal Revenue in 1965, right at the start of Ferdinand Marcos' administration. My family eventually left in 2003 when my mother was offered a job in North Carolina.

So most of my Philippine road knowledge is purely historical - might be worthwhile.

-A trip from Baguio to Manila originally took 4.5 hours. You would take the North Expressway from Quezon City to Bulacan, then the MacArthur Highway, to Kennon Road. An alternate route was built sometime in the '70s or '80s -the Marcos Highway, which was a modern 2 or 4 lane road to Baguio. After 1991, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo lengthened the trip to 6 hours - various roads were buried and bypasses had to be rebuilt.
-Taxis are hard to find in Manila. Your best bet was to use a jeepney or a tricycle.
-EDSA and the Manila Metro is infamous for its gridlocked traffic. My dad's 10 (or 15?) km commute took him over two hours on most days, since he lived in Novaliches but commuted inward into Manila.
-EDSA also was gridlocked because of a lack of pedestrian overpasses - most crossed EDSA's 8 lanes at grade. Which meant traffic signals, at most every street.
-The Philippines' roads were mostly designed and built by the US - some date to the Spanish era. However, the US granted the Philippines independence in 1946, years before the Interstate system. This means there is a severe lack of freeways (as of 2003, it mostly consisted of the NLEX and SLEX; cities like Cebu, Davao, and especially Baguio lacked freeway systems).
-Driving in the Philippines can be best described as chaotic. New Yorkers don't hold a candle to the insanity that is Manila drivers. Surprisingly, street racing isn't common - instead, people are trying to kill each other with their cars; that includes the buses, jeepneys, bicycles...
-Similarly, car parts are often stolen from parked cars. Side mirrors are often lost because of side swiping incidents.

[TheStranger]

My family's roots lie in the Philippines - mostly in the Manila Metro. Actually, my great grandfather even ran the Bureau of Internal Revenue in 1965, right at the start of Ferdinand Marcos' administration. My family eventually left in 2003 when my mother was offered a job in North Carolina.

So most of my Philippine road knowledge is purely historical - might be worthwhile.

-A trip from Baguio to Manila originally took 4.5 hours. You would take the North Expressway from Quezon City to Bulacan, then the MacArthur Highway, to Kennon Road. An alternate route was built sometime in the '70s or '80s -the Marcos Highway, which was a modern 2 or 4 lane road to Baguio. After 1991, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo lengthened the trip to 6 hours - various roads were buried and bypasses had to be rebuilt.

The SCTEX and TPLEX route was built over the last 12-13 years, essentially getting NLEX connected to La Union (with the final segment so far opened in 2019).

NLEX itself did go up only to Gigunto, Bulacan until 1968.  In 1976 the Candaba Viaduct was built, extending the road to Pampanga; however the final north extent to Mabalacat did not occur until 1989.

-Taxis are hard to find in Manila. Your best bet was to use a jeepney or a tricycle.

I've actually ridden a taxi in Ermita but the big gamechanger in that field is Grab (similar to Uber/Lyft); Grab however is noticeably more pricey than jeepneys. 

Mass transit was implemented in Metro Manila starting in 1984 with LRT-1 (whose overhead viaducts have been blamed for ruining the Rizal Avenue theater district permanently) and the core three lines (LRT-1, LRT-2, MRT-3) all existed by 2003, back when NLEX and SLEX remained the only long-distance controlled-access roads in the country and the Metro Manila Skyway was merely an express lanes viaduct from Bicutan to Buendia Avenue.  It's interesting how this differs from the US pattern of highway boom, highway revolts, and then mass transit boom.

-EDSA and the Manila Metro is infamous for its gridlocked traffic. My dad's 10 (or 15?) km commute took him over two hours on most days, since he lived in Novaliches but commuted inward into Manila.
-EDSA also was gridlocked because of a lack of pedestrian overpasses - most crossed EDSA's 8 lanes at grade. Which meant traffic signals, at most every street.

Pre-Skyway Stage 3, gridlock on EDSA had pretty much become ingrained in the Philippine consciousness - even when using Harbor Link + Roxas had become more viable.  I can see in part why the new Skyway gap closure really has had a bit of a PR push, given how much of a change being able to entirely skip EDSA going north-south to and from NAIA has been.

IIRC most of the Makati segment (from just west of Magallanes out towards the Kalaayan Flyover, and at Guadalupe) has been converted to a de-facto freeway - one thing that helped this segment is the the fact that unlike every other segment of EDSA, businesses do not have direct frontage to the road.  Ortigas, Cubao, and North EDSA especially are where the malls built out to the road level, with bus stops often along those portions too, so while there are overpasses at Ortigas and at Quezon Avenue, they are band-aid solutions to a bypass that ended up becoming too much of a commercial strip.

Wikipedia mentions that some overpasses near North EDSA were proposed in 2013 but never have been built.

I've sat in traffic in the Makati segment of EDSA at rush hour before (around 9 in the morning) but recall the area approaching Cubao as almost always a place where congestion built up.  (Google Maps regularly shows Ortigas Center as a choke point as well)

-The Philippines' roads were mostly designed and built by the US - some date to the Spanish era. However, the US granted the Philippines independence in 1946, years before the Interstate system. This means there is a severe lack of freeways (as of 2003, it mostly consisted of the NLEX and SLEX; cities like Cebu, Davao, and especially Baguio lacked freeway systems).

Cebu is getting an expressway or two and a new bridge in recent times;  Baguio is still too mountainous of an area to be fully accessed by a wider/more modern road directly, but the TPLEX extension at least gets one to Rosario, within 35.9 km/22.4 miles of the resort city.  (Google still gives about an hour drive time from Rosario to Baguio)

[TheStranger]

Updates on Skyway Extension in Alabang/Susana Heights.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1m38XSg9EA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OImO_zEh9ds

[TheStranger]

360 camera view of the southbound stretch of Skyway Stage 3 from Balintawak/NLEX to Quezon Avenue.  Notable in this is the wall cutout at the future exit to westbound C-3/5th Avenue, which has part of the ramp in Quezon City and part of it in Caloocan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0kIOzA9eEQ

Night drive showing the light masts for the San Juan River section
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aecFqGoV4D0

[bing101]

My family's roots lie in the Philippines - mostly in the Manila Metro. Actually, my great grandfather even ran the Bureau of Internal Revenue in 1965, right at the start of Ferdinand Marcos' administration. My family eventually left in 2003 when my mother was offered a job in North Carolina.

So most of my Philippine road knowledge is purely historical - might be worthwhile.

-A trip from Baguio to Manila originally took 4.5 hours. You would take the North Expressway from Quezon City to Bulacan, then the MacArthur Highway, to Kennon Road. An alternate route was built sometime in the '70s or '80s -the Marcos Highway, which was a modern 2 or 4 lane road to Baguio. After 1991, the eruption of Mount Pinatubo lengthened the trip to 6 hours - various roads were buried and bypasses had to be rebuilt.
-Taxis are hard to find in Manila. Your best bet was to use a jeepney or a tricycle.
-EDSA and the Manila Metro is infamous for its gridlocked traffic. My dad's 10 (or 15?) km commute took him over two hours on most days, since he lived in Novaliches but commuted inward into Manila.
-EDSA also was gridlocked because of a lack of pedestrian overpasses - most crossed EDSA's 8 lanes at grade. Which meant traffic signals, at most every street.
-The Philippines' roads were mostly designed and built by the US - some date to the Spanish era. However, the US granted the Philippines independence in 1946, years before the Interstate system. This means there is a severe lack of freeways (as of 2003, it mostly consisted of the NLEX and SLEX; cities like Cebu, Davao, and especially Baguio lacked freeway systems).
-Driving in the Philippines can be best described as chaotic. New Yorkers don't hold a candle to the insanity that is Manila drivers. Surprisingly, street racing isn't common - instead, people are trying to kill each other with their cars; that includes the buses, jeepneys, bicycles...
-Similarly, car parts are often stolen from parked cars. Side mirrors are often lost because of side swiping incidents.

I remember prior to the Pandemic the Philippines was in the process of decentralizing the economy meaning that they were in the process of moving jobs outside the Manila area and they are in the process of making Downtown Clark and Downtown Cebu get more well paying jobs. So far the Freeway building process is still underway for CCLEX, Metro Cebu, and CLLEX in some parts of the USA.

[TheStranger]

Southbound at Buendia Avenue, the Skyway Stage 3 section has now opened up to 3 lanes along that carriageway (instead of 2 with the fast lane cordoned off as it had been since 12/29) -

https://www.skyscrapercity.com/threads/metro-manila-skyway.1492516/post-171479327



---

Some of my Skyway observations after watching numerous (over 40-45 or so) videos of the soft opening:

- It's interesting that EDSA and some of the city streets in Manila and Quezon City suffer from the overuse of lane-specific pullthrough signage (how is Alabang even the control city for EDSA eastbound/southbound near SM North EDSA mall!?), while the Skyway has the exact opposite: I don't think anywhere from Alabang to Balintawak has a single pullthrough sign at all!  Maybe this is something to be rectified in the future and may have been set aside until Stage 3 is fully opened.  Going northbound, Manila/Makati is the obvious pullthrough idea I had up to Magallanes, then Manila/Balintawak to Pandacan.  (Pandacan could be interesting depending on how NLEX Connector gets signed once finished - I could see the left ramps from Skyway signed for Angeles or Clark with New Manila International Airport as an eventual control, and Skyway being given Balintawak as the only control city northbound after that).

Past the C-3 exit, longer-distance destinations make sense again (Angeles to me is almost the only practical choice as NLEX does not go beyond that area)

Southbound, Manila/Makati also would be the practical pullthrough destinations from NLEX onward, and then Alabang and NAIA starting right before the Buendia exit.

- Curious to see how many ramps will be opening on January 14th - if any - or if the full opening is just all of the mainline lanes, striped and paved with fresh asphalt.

- Right now, the exits are pretty much just only labeled by name on the BGSes, with destinations listed on small signage that can really only be read at smaller speeds.  (Contextually, years ago the Amorsolo exit used to be known as the Makati exit)

I get this is similar to how DOTs in the US have gradually gone towards removing exit destinations if a street name is used, and even for numbered freeways.  At the same time I feel there is a lot of value in providing some exit control cities, especially due to the fact the highway ends up skirting through or near 6 different cities in Stage 3 (Makati, Manila, Mandaluyong, San Juan, Quezon City, Caloocan).

The Nagtahan ramps could be given Malacanang as a secondary destination, given this is the quickest route to the presidential complex from anywhere.

Southbound exit to Plaza Dilao could use Malate/Ermita as destinations.  The ramps to Tomas Claudio could have advance signage for Santa Mesa, given that the only ramps planned near SM City Santa Mesa are onramps.

The southbound E. Rodriguez/Bayani ramp could have Sampaloc as a control, at least until NLEX Connector provides more direct access to that district.

C-3 exit could directly point to the Port of Manila area.  (if the Port Link Expressway and the extension along C-3 in Caloocan is ever built, could even have things signed for say Intramuros/Anda Circle at that point, or for NMIA if the Shoreline Expressway is also built)

Both the Magallanes and Balintawak exits need to have references to EDSA, maybe to EDSA control cities such as Ortigas (from the Makati/Magallanes side of things) or Monumento/SM City North EDSA (in Balintawak).

Moving further south, the NAIAX exit could easily be signed for CAVITEX and Entertainment City, especially if this route is to be used as an alternative to having drivers get to Mall of Asia via EDSA from Magallanes west to Pasay.  (In the future, if Port Link Expressway happens, easily could also be signed for Malate to try to encourage drivers to not use the Buendia or Quirino exits for that purpose)

- I get exactly why people at SkyscraperCity have complained about the overuse of solid white lines for lane striping, but it doesn't seem like that has the same "do not pass in your own direction" implication that it does here.  San Miguel may be intending for the San Juan River section to be a no-passing zone anyway.

- Although the ergonomics of the Quezon Avenue offramps have already been bantered about a ton on SkyscraperCity and in some of the Skyway videos, the Del Monte toll plaza with its usage of the road support columns to divide toll lanes easily could be improved with real K-rail or something to create more natural gore points.

- Should be an obvious thing but the current connection from Skyway Stage 3 northbound to NLEX northbound literally feeds into a shoulder lane, rather than having its own dedicated merge lanes.  Hoping for a restriping before the grand opening.

---

New video of the northbound onramp at Araneta and Landargun in Quezon City being constructed for Skyway Stage 3:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qzol3G9PhI

Update on the Cavite-Laguna Expressway/CALAX
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdFt9vC778Y

Northbound motorcycle convoy ride on Skyway Stage 3 starting at Buendia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExtPRdwMbPw


---

from the latter video: some new signs on the road!

This is near the bend at 5th Avenue:

[TheStranger]

A friend of mine got to travel the road southbound yesterday and graciously sent me some photos:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/csampang/albums/72157717821972161

- Two-lane section in Balintawak after leaving NLEX
2 - two-lane Skyway section in northern Balintawak by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Crossing over EDSA in Balintawak, at the Quezon City/Caloocan border
7 - EDSA Balintawak by Chris Sampang, on Flickr
8 - LRT-1 Balintawak by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- view of the Del Monte double deck section from over Araneta and Santo Domingo
10 - Araneta at Santo Domingo, QC, near MFT Building and Del Monte toll plaza by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- 1km from Quezon Avenue signage, complete with the tiny font next-few-exits sign
9 - 1 kilometer from Quezon Avenue by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- 200m from Quezon Avenue
13 - Quezon Avenue advance signage southbound by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Crossing over Magsaysay Boulevard and the LRT-2 line in Quezon City near SM City Santa Mesa and Hotel Sogo.
23 - Magsaysay Blvd - LRT2 - Hotel Sogo by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- San Juan River section, near the Marketplace mall in Mandaluyong
28 - Marketplace Mandaluyong at San Juan River by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Plaza Dilao area, looking north-northwest at the open onramp and at the Binondo skyline.
36 - Plaza Dilao by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- The southbound bend where the Skyway moves from the Quirino Avenue corridor to the Osmena Highway corridor
38 - Quirino Osmena bend by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Buendia exit sign southbound, with bubbling pretty apparent on the greenout sticker that replaced "Gil Puyat" text
40 - Buendia advanced signage SB by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- The downhill as both SLEX and Skyway overpasses come down from Buendia Avenue and Skyway Stage 3 seamlessly leads into the original 1990s Skyway Stage 1 alignment.  In the distance is the semi-directional Y interchange with Amorsolo Street, which takes an unusual curving path along Pasay Road (Arnaiz Avenue) before landing at Amorsolo next to Makati Cinema Square mall.
44 - between Buendia and Amorsolo by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Crossing over EDSA and MRT-3 in Magallanes, Makati
48 - Magallanes EDSA by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Advanced signage for NAIAX.  No mention that this also connects to CAVITEX and Entertainment City, though this linkage is now much more useful allowing southbound drivers from NLEX/Quezon City/Manila to entirely avoid EDSA to go to Mall of Asia.  (in fact, my friend and her family went to that mall along this route shortly afterwards)
51 - Skyway at NAIAX by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- Skyway view of SLEX's Sales Interchange, a simple B2 partial cloverleaf with the older expressway and Sales Road/Lawton Avenue, providing access to Bonifacio Global City going east and NAIA to the west.
53 - Sales Interchange by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

-

- view of SLEX from the southbound ramp to westbound NAIAX.  One can see northbound SLEX with the individual-lane control cities of Manila and Cubao (the latter only accessible via EDSA northbound)
54 - view of SLEX and Sales Interchange from SB Skyway to NAIAX ramp by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

- View of SLEX (and Skyway just a bit back) and Sales Road from the ramp to NAIAX
55 - NAIAX westbound ramp looking NE at Skyway and SLEX by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

[TheStranger]

Some construction updates on the NLEX Connector, photos via Pinoy Joyride (submitted by a couple of people who read the page) -

- at 5th Avenue in Caloocan, this looks to be the mainline expressway lanes crossing it from Harbor Link south to the railroad alignment
https://www.facebook.com/pinoyjoyride/photos/a.1044498782232230/4192147917467285


- at Blumentritt station in Manila
https://www.facebook.com/pinoyjoyride/photos/a.1044498782232230/4192004150814995


- more shots:
https://www.facebook.com/pinoyjoyride/posts/4192463217435755?__cft__

• =AZVByU_X1CT6P2BCQiynHgi4gJLp76J9sPC0hIwvvEFPrRItxejKTeOzwjq8YAKGFogwgL7-5-gXZwZp4rklV8cvpN9BJcWeEHWQshSL58Ki1E1kjrdfZEBFYbpQRPz4cDhfVF7CmRurvX8nnbEaafkg&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R
  
  
  

[bing101]

Another group is filming Cebu Cordova Bridge. It look like the bridge is based on the 2013 eastern half of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge from the shots on the scene. 

[TheStranger]

Interesting blurb from this article on the New Manila International Airport:
https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/01/11/news/regions/50-year-franchise-granted-to-mega-bulacan-airport/826317/

In addition to the 8-kilometer NMIA Expressway from NLEX, the concessionaire will have 21 more expressways to and from NMIA.

These include the Skyway Stage 3 extension from Balintawak to Bulacan, Bulacan-Bataan Airport Expressway, Bulacan-Tarlac Airport Expressway segment 1 and segment 2, NMIA-MRT 7 Expressway from Balagtas to Bulacan and other expressway extension projects from Metro Manila to NMIA in Bulakan town.

To think that at one point, Skyway Stage 3 was supposed to have a north terminus before the Balintawak Cloverleaf, instead of the segment that bypasses it and the Camachile Flyover entirely.  That extra mile or so sets up nicely for the future airport extension northwest (and the support columns already in place between the current terminus and the Balintawak toll plaza speak to this).

The NMIA-MRT7 Expressway seems to be the primary access for all points north of Marilao to the NMIA perimeter, connecting to NLEX in Balagtas and heading south-southwest.

---

New drone video of Skyway Stage 3! 3 days until the mainline is fully opened for all lanes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XHziifeBqes

---

From this video below: More "exits opening soon" signage along Skyway Stage 3.  Though in the case of the Nagtahan ramp, I'm not sure "soon" is really all that soon:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wxu4Gz2jI9Q

E. Rodriguez


Nagtahan

[TheStranger]

https://youtu.be/l4Z6pzUU5j0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-V3SJijAJQ&t=764s

One takeaway from this pair of new Skyway videos is that there are TWO left exits in a row on northbound Skyway Stage 3 between Quirino Avenue and the San Juan River - Nagtahan (also the proposed link to the west segment of Pasig River Expressway), followed by Tomas Claudio/NLEX Connector.

It's actually pretty notable how the Manila-Quezon City stretch of road has more left exits and left onramps than any other expressway in the Philippines, and certainly a high amount for a modern road.
(3 left exits northbound, with 1 left onramp at Quezon Avenue, and left offramp for Quezon Avenue from Skyway Stage 3 southbound)

Other observations:

- Lane striping work continues near Quezon Avenue, though not completed yet.  Heading into Del Monte, the pavement and striping look to be closer to complete.  (Essentially north of Plaza Dilao, the striping is the solid white line style that has garnered complaints at Skyscrapercity forums)

- As a temporary measure to deal with the northbound Quezon Avenue ramp queue, the gore point has been moved back about 200 meters using cones.

- The "Skyway Ends" sign northbound before Buendia Avenue has now been covered up.

---

New Skyway Stage 3 photos in this article:
https://www.autoindustriya.com/features/how-fast-can-we-get-from-bacoor-to-qc-via-skyway-stage-3.html

The "Quezon Avenue next exit" temporary sign, which has not been accurate at any point (as Quirino is the next exit up)


SM City Santa Mesa parking garage


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Northbound SLEX-Skyway video.  Note that what had been the fast/passing lane (left) lane southbound on SLEX in Alabang is now temporarily the northbound entrance to the Skyway.  Does allow for better view of the support columns for the future Skyway extension southbound lanes between Alabang and Susana Heights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UK24qOBKjs

[TheStranger]

Skyway Stage 3 to be closed all day January 14th in preparation for opening ceremonies that day and the full opening of all 7 mainline lanes on the morning of the 15th

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/news/nation/771595/all-7-lanes-of-skyway-stage-3-to-be-opened-to-regular-vehicular-traffic-january-15-smc/story/

Toll-free phase extended a few more days, to February 1st.
https://www.facebook.com/smcramonang/posts/214567046965007


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New photos from NLEX of the bridge supports and structure for the NLEX Connector crossing over 5th Avenue in Caloocan, which has just been completed:




--

Some new Skyway Stage 3 shots from news articles.

https://www.untvweb.com/news/skyway-stage-3-to-begin-full-operation-on-january-15/
also with this relevant quote on how it already shifted traffic patterns in Metro Manila:

Since the project began on December 29 last year, around 60,000 to 70,000 motorists were able to ply daily in the said Skyway section, the DPWH said.

"Qualitatively we can see na maraming natutuwa dahil sa ngayon kapag rush hour minsan sa Edsa makikita natin di naman gaano kagrabe ang traffic and the numbers would show this dahil ito naman talaga ang expectations namin ito yung target namin na mabawasan ang Edsa ng at least 100,000 cars para bumalik siya sa original capacity,"  explained Villar.

The Skyway and SLEX overpasses crossing Buendia Avenue, with the Buendia onramp to southbound Skyway (and the Amorsolo flyover) in the distance


Telephoto shot in the Balintawak area showing the elevation changes as the mainline rises to cross over EDSA and LRT-1

https://www.philstar.com/nation/2021/01/14/2070261/smcs-skyway-3-fully-operational-tomorrow

Quezon Avenue onramp (with left entry)

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Possible ghost ramp stub southbound?  Here's a little cutout notch blocked off by guardrail near the Amorsolo Street semi-directional Y interchange.  Would make sense to add a southbound offramp here someday as at present, southbound Skyway has only one total exit in Makati (Buendia Avenue) compared to FOUR for northbound (Magallanes/EDSA, Don Bosco Street, Amorsolo Street, and Buendia Avenue).
https://www.google.com/maps/@14.5514461,121.0108172,3a,75y,275.19h,85.77t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1spzncK4BVs65PCgaty-N_Kw!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo3.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DpzncK4BVs65PCgaty-N_Kw%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D248.81572%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

https://www.google.com/maps/@14.5514165,121.0107292,3a,68.3y,333.76h,97.99t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sIYx5w8AK4bH3NmEQCoyZHg!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DIYx5w8AK4bH3NmEQCoyZHg%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D326.00027%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i13312!8i6656

[TheStranger]

News stories on the final official inspections of Skyway Stage 3 before the full opening of the mainline on Friday the 15th:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gh47YwmUwZg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NndNOjMu7U

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360 Tour of Skyway
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WuL0G-ZukTE

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New overhead photo of the stretch of Skyway above Osmena Highway in Manila & Makati:
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/smc-ready-open-skyway-stage-000000263.html


Grand view in Pandacan of the Skyway with Ortigas Center in the background
https://www.autoindustriya.com/auto-industry-news/skyway-stage-3-officially-opens-jan-15-toll-free-until-feb-1.html



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One subtle thing I discovered in following the road on OpenStreetMap: It looks like the listed distances to exits on Stage 3 are not accurate!

Here is what the first southbound sign in Balintawak gives out:

Quezon Avenue - 3 km
Buendia Avenue - 18 km
NAIAX - 23 km
Bicutan - 28 km
Sucat - 31 km
Alabang - 34 km

However, using OpenStreetMap I get the following distances from that NLEX-Skyway southbound ramp:

Quezon Avenue - 5.5 km
Buendia Avenue - 16.6 km
NAIAX - 21.6 km
Bicutan - 26 km
Sucat - 29 km
Alabang - 33 km


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From SkyscraperCity: some diagram of a potential EDSA elevated expressway.  Not sure the source.
https://www.skyscrapercity.com/threads/c4-epifanio-de-los-santos-avenue-edsa.1442071/post-171549235


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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1AvK06-LJg

Southbound trip on the last day of soft opening (1/13).  Lane markings already starting to be placed near Cloverleaf Mall in Balintawak and near Del Monte, as well as through the rest of the Quezon City section.  Still no markings at the time from Pandacan to the curve following Quirino Avenue to Osmena Highway.  Also a lack of lane markings southbound near the Buendia Avenue offramp.

HOWEVER, a new next-three-exits sign was installed right after the Buendia exit!

[TheStranger]

All of the lanes of Skyway Stage 3 from Buendia Avenue to NLEX in Balintawak should be open now (as of 5 AM Philippines time on Friday 1/15 - 1 PM Pacific time 1/14).  Will post videos and photos as folks on the internet get those up throughout the day and weekend.

First news video of the day at 6 AM Philippines time, 3 PM Pacific:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbM2F6wjs_0

Second news video, around 7:40 AM local time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI-Be-BRNVI
This one lists the proposed toll rates for the road, at least northbound -
Buendia to Sta. Mesa - PHP110 ($2.29) (presumably they mean exiting in Pandacan)
Buendia to Ramon Magsaysay - PHP141 ($2.94) (the anchor specifically meant from Buendia Avenue to Quezon Avenue when asking the field reporter about this particular tollrate)
Sta. Mesa to Ramon Magsaysay - PHP31 (65 cents) (entering near Pandacan and exiting at Quezon Avenue before the Del Monte toll plaza?)
Ramon Magsaysay to Balintawak - PHP153 ($3.19) (entering either at Landargun Street or Quezon Avenue and exiting at NLEX.  Not sure about the ramp from the Santa Mesa Bridge that has not been completed yet)
Buendia to Balintawak (mainline only) - PHP274 ($5.71)

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New photos of NLEX Connector construction near Blumentritt PNR station in Manila:
https://www.facebook.com/pinoyjoyride/posts/4203162729699137?__cft__

• =AZVviigrFhmVw7YTqm6SfB09VeHyFwrUQSJ-X2ScDvNP1oolEZzu3MzZC-EIDSeHLlGFI3mXHi1hzC30DnGVNRXztjEbggT9YbaRmt_i_2w9ZjD6r8INpP8KGEctbodeoHj9DswQrVlc4KPdi5R_jHgt&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ---
  
  Video of what traffic in Balintawak along EDSA looks like now that Skyway Stage 3 has fully reopened.
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WmMedWlhrY

[bing101]

Update on the Cebu Cordova Bridge.

[TheStranger]

From skyscrapercity: a San Miguel Corporation planning map of New Manila International Airport, showing:

- the north end of the Skyway extension to the airport property, cutting northwest past Obando
- the Airport Expressway, a spur from NLEX in Marilao west to the terminals
- Bataan-Bulacan Airport Expressway (BBEX)
- Bulacan-Tarlac Airport Expressway (BTEX)

[TheStranger]

First video of all six lanes being open on Skyway Stage 3!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM2QRjZyol4

Several more being posted right now:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCle4SAA5oY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tbXhDTuSL8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYsKCOuKukk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HM7MsbO2aM

From this latter video, some new signage seen today!  Here's the old Skyway Ends sign at Buendia now replaced with a Welcome to Skyway Stage 3 sign:


The inaccurate Quezon Avenue Next Exit sign still remains, however.

New (but covered up) next-three-exits sign right before Quirino Avenue:


SMC Infrastructure sign near the still unfinished Nagtahan exit:


Seems that the lane configuration between Buendia and Del Monte is 4 lanes northbound, 3 lanes southbound; but north of the toll plaza towards Balintawak it's flipped around to 3 lanes northbound, 4 lanes southbound.

North of Sgt. Rivera/5th Avenue the current temporary configuration looks to be 3 lanes southbound, 2 northbound, then 3 northbound, 2 southbound past the under-construction A. Bonifacio/Balintawak ramp.
Between the Balintawak Cloverleaf and the Camachile Flyover it looks like the temporary Super 2 layout is in effect.

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Ground-level video of the area near the southbound onramp for the Quezon Avenue interchange.  Note that Araneta Avenue is pretty free flowing in this area now that most of the at-grade construction is done.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5omzA9LPjM


Southbound video of the fully-opened mainline
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK6taWFIhL4

From that video, a screencap of the view where the road curves at the A. Bonifacio/Sgt. Rivera intersection:


Higher quality shot of the next-three-exits sign after Buendia Avenue going southbound


New "NAIAX Next Exit" sign near Amorsolo Street onramp

[bing101]

An update on New Clark Bridge.