In early August 2023, motorists traveling North were pummeled by bad weather, resulting in flooding on the San Simon section of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX). The high water paralyzed the vital northern artery and caused nightmare traffic for travelers. To address this, the DPWH said it would allocate a budget to raise this portion of NLEX by 0.7 meters.
Now the NLEX Corporation recently announced it has begun preliminary work to elevate the 200m San Simon portion in Pampanga by 0.7 meters. More than just raising the road, there will be flood walls with sump pits and sump pumps to manage flood waters. NLEX Corporation also plans to raise the pavement of the San Simon ramp and improve its drainage system.
“The goal is to enhance safety, accessibility, and mobility of motorists especially during the rainy season. We aim to complete the project as soon as possible with minimal disruption to the motorists,” explained NLEX president J. Luigi. Bautista. “The problem is the flood level outside the NLEX has overflowed to the lowest area of NLEX in San Simon. We asked the DPWH to raise the Tulaoc overpass so we can also elevate this portion of the expressway,” he added Bautista.
DWPH Secretary Manuel Bonoan also made his commitment to raise the Tulaoc overpass by 0.7m. Once this is done, NLEX plans to add another 0.3m on the pavement, raising the 200-meter portion of San Simon by a total of 1 meter.
The target for project completion was said to be before the "holiday rush", although another part of the official announcement said before the year ends. They're not quite the same, but we'll take it. Let's cross our fingers that this gets resolved soon.
