Travel time to Baguio City and other north Luzon destinations are expected to be lessened by another 30 minutes as the government intends to open the final segment of the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) within this month.
In an interview with Business World, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) “Build Build Build” Committee chairperson Anna Mae Lamentillo said that the 11.45-km last phase of TPLEX between Pozorrubio, Pangasinan and Rosario, La Union will “open this month.”
According to the DPWH official, the formal opening of the Pozorrubio-Rosario segment is due to take place “by the last week of June.” This final phase was originally scheduled to open by April 2020 but the coronavirus lockdown pushed the ceremony to a later date.
A fully completed TPLEX will reduce travel time from Tarlac to Rosario, La Union from 3.5 hours, down to just an hour. With this development, travelling to the country’s summer capital will also be significantly faster.
From Metro Manila, journeys to Baguio can be done in less than three hours when taken via TPLEX Pozorrubio exit. In a Facebook post, Transportation undersecretary Tim Orbos previously shared that he traveled from Balintawak, Quezon City to TPLEX Pozorubio exit in just two hours. He added that from that point on, driving to Baguio within 45 minutes is possible.
There is a pending proposal to further extend TPLEX by another 100 kilometers all the way to Ilocos Sur.
Private Infra Dev Corp. (PIDC), a subsidiary under San Miguel Corporation (SMC), holds the concession for the 89.3-km, of the four-lane TLPEX.
A fully completed TPLEX will ease traffic and improve interconnectivity between the major north Luzon destinations of Baguio, La Union, and Ilocos.
