New Quezon road eases traffic woes, offers scenic view
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| THE NEW ecotourism road cuts through coconut plantations in Sariaya town in Quezon province. DELFIN T. MALLARI JR./INQUIRER SOUTHERN LUZON |
LUCENA CITY—Beset by traffic problems along
the Maharlika Highway, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
opened a 24-kilometer road that connects the provinces of Quezon and Batangas
while providing motorists a scenic view of the countryside.
Nestor Cleofas, DPWH Quezon second
engineering district chief, said the two-lane concrete highway provides a
comfortable and leisurely trip to travelers by skipping the town centers of
Sariaya in Quezon, the city center of San Pablo and Alaminos town in Laguna
province, and Santo Tomas town in Batangas.
Motorists using the ecotourism road will also
be treated to a splendid view of Mt. Banahaw, verdant rice fields and coconut
plantations, Cleofas said. “They can even scout for future vacation venues
along the rows of beach resorts in Sariaya town,” he said.
Opened in mid-March, the road has five
concrete bridges and will serve as an alternate route to Maharlika Highway that
traverses Quezon, Laguna and Batangas, passing through the Batangas towns of
San Juan, Rosario and Ibaan on the way to the Southern Tagalog Arterial Road
(Star) Tollway that connects to the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx).
It also aims to boost the economic and
tourism potentials of Sariaya, considered one of the major tourist destinations
in the coastline of southern Luzon.
Travel time from Lucena City to Metro Manila
via Maharlika Highway, a 126-kilometer route, takes about four hours because of
traffic gridlock, especially on sections of the highway leading to town and
city centers.
By using the ecotourism road, motorists will
negotiate a longer 149-km route but travel time would take only three hours.
James de los Reyes, who travels regularly
from Lucena to Metro Manila, said the new road cut his travel time by 30 to 45
minutes.
Though there are occasional gridlocks in the
towns of San Juan, Rosario and Ibaan, De los Reyes considered these “tolerable”
compared to time spent on the road in chokepoints along Maharlika Highway.
“But I’m still wary of taking the ecotourism
road at night. It seems deserted with only few vehicles using it,” he said.
Traffic flow on the section of Maharlika
Highway, which cuts through Sariaya’s town center, slows down because of narrow
streets and the volume of vehicles that include motorcycles and tricycles
jockeying for every inch of road space.
The ecotourism road project was started in
2006 and was supposed to be completed in 2011. Road right-of-way payments and
shortage of materials due to suspension of quarrying at the foot of Banahaw in
Sariaya delayed its completion.
Cleofas said the new road would also provide
a faster, safer and shorter travel time from Metro Manila to the Bicol region.
With existing bypass roads in Tiaong and
Candelaria towns in Quezon, the completion of the ecotourism road will help
ease traffic woes of motorists along the central parts of Quezon.
A 7.2-km bypass road is also being
constructed in Sariaya. Barring road right-of-way problems, it is expected to
be finished in 2017. - Delfin T. Mallari, Jr. INQUIRER
