MPT South promotes sustainable tourism via ‘Envirosafe Tour’

MANILA: Metro Pacific Tollways South (MPT South), a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), has launched its “Envirosafe Tour” in collaboration with Tablea Batirol and Likhang Maragondon, with participants from various media organizations. Tablea Batirol produces pure and real chocolate tablets made from locally sourced cacao beans planted and harvested by locals of Alfonso, Cavite, while Likhang Maragondon creates artistic handiwork products made from locally sourced materials by the weavers of one of the country's historic towns, Maragondon, Cavite.

As the name suggests, MPT South's Envirosafe Tour is a guided tour program that promotes sustainable tourism by highlighting local attractions, one-of-a-kind products, and mouthwatering food that are accessible via MPT South's toll road network.

“We are very pleased to present to our stakeholders MPT South’s commitment to advancing sustainability and continuing infrastructure projects with the least disruption to communities and the environment. Through Envirosafe Tour, we are also supporting local businesses situated in our host communities by purchasing their items and providing it as tokens to our guests. For this leg, we showcased Bukluran sa Kaunlaran ng Tibig Multipurpose Cooperative’s handcrafted pen holders made of coco fiber and recycled paper,” MPT South Assistant Vice President for Communication and Stakeholder Management Arlette Capistrano stated.

The visitors toured around the MPT South Management Corporation's headquarters, the MPT South Hub. They got a glimpse of its green technology and innovation, including the solar panel field, the biophilic architecture of the building, the EV charging station, and the advanced traffic control center.

MPT South Hub is a four-story, LEED Gold-certified building located in Alapan II-B, Imus, Cavite. The car parking sheds have a total of 1,184 solar panel units installed, which contribute to 97.37% of the building's energy needs and lower CO2 emissions. Since last year, it has produced about 400,000 kilowatts of solar power, saving more than 300,000 kg of CO2 — the equivalent of planting more than 10,000 trees.

The Traffic Control Room (TCR), which is located on the second floor, has 24 units of 55-inch LED screens displaying CCTV footage along the expressways. It provides real-time traffic monitoring along the operational segments of the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX) and Manila-Cavite Expressway (Cavitex).

An electric-powered van was used to transport visitors around the Hub. It is also being used as an employee shuttle service. It is a 12-seater EV with a range of up to 100 km and a full charge time of 1.5 to two hours. MPT South now has two units of the said EV driving around the Cavite province.

In accordance with the company's commitment to climate action, MPT South announced its plan to showcase MPTC's involvement in the decarbonization of the country's transport sector by turning its expressways to more environmentally friendly highways.

The toll road operator began this transformation in CALAX, which is currently implementing resource-saving and emission-reduction technologies while maintaining the high level of the expressway's road safety features. Existing toll plazas in the CALAX's operational segments are equipped with solar panels so they can run independently. The installation of LED fixtures for illumination and street lighting has also improved the company's energy-saving measures.

MPTC's Green Highway Initiative in CALAX is in line with MPTC's sustainability efforts that support the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly in upgrading all industries and infrastructures to make them sustainable (SDG 9) and promoting innovation in building assets in adherence to the company’s commitments to climate action (SDG 13).

Aside from CALAX and Cavitex, MPTC also owns the concessions for North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), NLEX Connector Road, Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), and Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX).

Photos from Metro Pacific Tollways South

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