Philippine expressway network

The Philippine expressway network, also known as the High Standard Highway Network, is a controlled-access highway network managed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), which consists of all expressways and regional high-standard highways in the Philippines.

High standard highways are defined as highways which provide a high level of traffic services by assuring high speed mobility and safe travel in order to vitally support socio-economic activities for sound socio-economic development of strategic regions and the country as a whole. In the Philippines, controlled-access highways are known as expressways. They are multi-lane divided toll roads which are privately maintained under concession from the government. The regional high standard highways are partial controlled-access highways that function as supplementary to expressways.

The Philippine expressway network spanned in length in 2015 and was extended to in 2020, and is to be extended to beyond 2030 according to the master plan submitted by the Japan International Cooperation Agency in 2010.

Overview

The Philippine highway network spans over across all regions of the Philippines. These highways, however, are mostly single and dual carriageways with many U-turn lanes and intersections slowing down traffic. Coupled with the increase in the number of vehicles and the demand for limited-access highways, the Philippine government requested the government of Japan to conduct a master plan for the development of a high standard highway network in 2009 under the Philippine Medium-Term Public Investment Plan (2005–2010). The plan calls for the promotion of national integrity by strengthening the Philippine Nautical Highway System linking roads and ferries, the decongestion of traffic in Metro Manila, and the improvement of accessibility to main tourist spots, among others.

The Philippine expressway network master plan covers the development of high standard highways surrounding Metro Manila in Luzon, Metro Cebu in the Visayas, and the Metro Davao–General Santos area in Mindanao.

Laws and restrictions

The establishment of limited-access highways or expressways are provided and defined by Republic Act No. 2000 or the Limited Access Highway Act, signed on June 22, 1957. Through the act, the Department of Public Works and Highways is authorized to designate new or existing roads as limited-access highways and to regulate points of entry along these limited-access highways.

Traffic laws on expressways are defined by the Limited Access Highway Act and Department of Public Works and Communications (DPWC) Administrative Order No. 1 series of 1968.

Standard traffic laws on all expressways based on the above laws include:
* Follow the rules and regulations of the Land Transportation and Traffic Code;
* Follow the minimum speed limit and maximum speed limit, except when on accelerating or deaccelerating lanes;
* Slow moving vehicles must stay on the right lane;
* When overtaking other vehicles, the left lane must be used as a passing lane;

While traveling along the expressway, vehicles are prohibited from:
* Entering or exiting an expressway into abutting lands or roads outside of designated access points;
* Driving a vehicle over or across the median strip;
* Making a left turn or u-turn except where explicitly allowed;
* Lane splitting, lane sharing, or lane filtering (including motorcycles);
* Stopping, loading, or unloading a vehicle outside of service areas;
* Making repairs to vehicles on travel lanes;
* Conducting or holding rallies, parades, funeral processions, and the like;

The following conveyances are prohibited on all expressways in the Philippines:
* Two-wheeled motorcycles with an engine displacement below ;
* Three-wheeled motorcycles with an engine displacement below ;
* Jaywalking, loitering, or travelling on foot;
* Riding or herding animals;
* Riding a bicycle, tricycle, pedicab, or any unmotorized vehicle;
* Driving any vehicle or equipment with an overall height exceeding or incapable of traveling at the minimum speed limit;
* Putting any stickers, posters, and tarpaulins within the expressway premises, including those used during elections;

Types

High standard highways in the Philippines are classified into two types: the arterial high standard highways or expressways, and regional high standard highways.

Controlled-access highways or Expressways (HSH-1)

Arterial high standards highways (HSH-1) in the Philippines are known as expressways. They are highways with controlled-access, normally with interchanges and may include facilities for levying tolls for passage in an open or closed system. Standard features of Philippine expressways include guard rails, rumble strips, signs and pavement markings, solid wall fence, speed radars, toll plaza, closed-circuit television and rest and service areas. The speed limit is for cars and jeepneys, for trucks and buses, and is the minimum for all classes of vehicles.

The first expressways in the Philippines are the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), both of which were built in the late 1960s. The first elevated toll road in the Philippines is the Skyway, with its construction consisting of numerous sections called "stages". Its latest section, Stage 3, was completed in 2021. The Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR) Tollway, from Santo Tomas to Lipa in Batangas was opened in 2001 and was extended in 2008. The Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), the longest tollway in the Philippines was opened in 2008, setting the stage for the development of the Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway (TPLEX), which would extend beyond the SCTEX' northern terminus in Tarlac City. The TPLEX was opened in 2013. The Cavite–Laguna Expressway (CALAX), another expressway in Southern Luzon, was partially opened on October 30, 2019. The Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) was partially opened on July 15, 2021.

There are many under construction and proposed expressways in the Philippines. All the expressways in the Philippines are privately maintained under concession agreements either with the Department of Public Works and Highways or the Toll Regulatory Board through build–operate–transfer (BOT) arrangements. At present, there are 15 expressways in the Philippines that connect Metro Manila to northern and southern Luzon and 1 expressway in Metro Cebu.

Regional high standard highways (HSH-2)

Regional high standard highways in the Philippines are multi-lane arterial roads with bypass, grade separation and/or frontage road. They connect the expressways and are mostly partial controlled-access highways. Their design speed is for inter-urban regional highways and for intra-urban highways.

Numbering system

Under the implementation of a route numbering system commissioned by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) on 2014, expressways are signed with yellow pentagonal signs with black numerals. They are prefixed with the letter "E" for "Expressway" to distinguish them from national highways. Expressways numbers are assigned sequentially and continuously.

Numbered routes

The Philippine expressway network is currently consisting of six discontinuous network of expressways, all of which are located in the island of Luzon.

Unnumbered routes

Tolls

Most of the expressways implement tolls, usually of the closed road and barrier toll systems. On expressways roads using closed road tolling, motorists first get a card or ticket at the entry point and surrender them upon exit. On expressways implementing barrier tolling, toll collection is done at toll plazas on a fixed rate. Some expressways employ a hybrid system that includes both, like the North Luzon Expressway, which uses both barrier ("open system") and closed road tolling.

Electronic toll collection (ETC) is first implemented on the Skyway and South Luzon Expressway, using transponder technology branded E-Pass. ETC systems are implemented by some toll road operators, with inter-running support on other connected expressways. Toll plazas or toll gates have ETC lanes on the leftmost lanes or on "mixed" lanes, that allow cash collection, or both. Latest ETC systems use radio frequency identification (RFID) technology over transponder technology for collection. Having different ETC systems that are not supported on other roads, a plan for a unified ETC system is promoted for motorists' convenience. Cashless toll collections on all expressways are on a dry run since 2023, aiming for full implementation in 2025.

, the toll rates by expressway are as follows:

Additionally, since June 1, 2024, the Agri-Trucks Toll Rebate Program is implemented to exempt vehicles carrying agricultural products from toll increases on expressways, aiming to ease inflation on these goods. For SMC Tollways-operated expressways such as SLEX and MCX, the average rebate ranges from to . Meanwhile, Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation-operated expressways such as NLEX, SCTEX, and CAVITEX offer rebates ranging from to . Both rates depend on the vehicle class, with the latter depending on the distance travelled as well.

Philippine Spine Expressway Network

Three components of the expressway network or the High Standard Highway Network are the Luzon Spine Expressway Network (LSEN), the Visayas Spine Expressway Network (VSEN), and the Mindanao Spine Expressway Network (MSEN). It is a planned network of interconnected expressways within the islands of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. It is part of the Build! Build! Build! Infrastructure Plan of DuterteNomics and the Build Better More of Bongbong Marcos.

In addition to the following expressways:
* Cavite–Laguna Expressway (CALAX)
* CAVITEX–C-5 Link
* Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX)
* Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX)
* Manila–Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX)
* Muntinlupa–Cavite Expressway (MCX)
* NAIA Expressway (NAIAX)
* NLEX Connector
* NLEX Harbor Link
* North Luzon Expressway (NLEX)
* Skyway
* South Luzon Expressway (SLEX)
* Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR Tollway)
* Subic Freeport Expressway (SFEX)
* Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX)
* Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway (TPLEX)

New expressways will be built as well, such as:
* C-5 Expressway
* CAVITEX–C-5 Link (Segments 2 and 3B)
* Cavite–Batangas Expressway (CBEX)
* Cavite–Laguna Expressway (CALAX) (Kawit to Silang West)
* Cebu Trans-Axial Expressway
* Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) (Phase 2: Aliaga to San Jose)
* Central Mindanao High Standard Highway (Cagayan de Oro–Malaybalay Section)
* Dalton Pass East Alignment Road
* Davao City Expressway (DAVEX)
* Davao–Digos Expressway
* Ilocos Norte-Ilocos Sur-Cordillera-Cagayan-Isabela Expressway (INISCCIEX)
* Iloilo-Capiz-Aklan Expressway Project (ICAEX)
* Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike (LLED)
* Lapu Lapu Expressway (LLEX)
* Manila–Bataan Coastal Road Extension
* Manila–Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) (Segment 5 and Sangley Point Extension)
* Manila–Quezon Expressway (MQEX)
* Metro Cebu Expressway (MCE, METCEBEX)
* Misamis Oriental Expressway (MISOREX)
* Naawan–Opol–Cagayan De Oro City–Villanueva Expressway
* NAIA Expressway (NAIAX) (BGC to Sales Interchange)
* Nasugbu–Bauan Expressway (NBEX)
* NLEX Connector (España to Sta. Mesa)
* NLEX Harbor Link (Segment 8.2)
* North Eastern Luzon Expressway (NELEX)
* North Luzon East Expressway (NLEE)
* North Luzon Expressway (Phase 3 and Sta. Ines Extension)
* Northern Access Link Expressway (NALEX)
* Pangasinan Link Expressway (PLEX)
* Plaridel Bypass Road
* R-7 Expressway
* Skyway Stage 7
* SLEX Toll Road 4 and 5
* Southern Access Link Expressway (SALEX)
* Southeast Metro Manila Expressway (SEMME)
* Tanauan-Tagaytay Expressway (Skyway Stage 8)
* Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway Extension

Asian Highway Network

The Asian Highway 26 () passes through three expressways in the Philippines:
# North Luzon Expressway from Guiguinto, Bulacan to Balintawak Interchange, Quezon City;
# South Luzon Expressway from Magallanes Interchange, Makati to Calamba, Laguna; and
# Skyway from Makati to Alabang.

See also

* Philippine highway network
* List of expressways in the Philippines
* Transportation in the Philippines
* List of bridges in the Philippines
* Philippine Nautical Highway System

Notes

References

External links

South Luzon Expressway Construction Project

{{Authority Control

Roads in the Philippines
Philippines