Skyway Stage 3 to now open in July 2020

MANILA: The elevated expressway, Skyway Stage 3, which was destined to open on April 1, 2020, will now come to fruition around three months later in July 2020. The reason behind the delay is the recent fire in Pandacan that took down a 300-metre long portion of the expressway along with a warehouse that was owned by San Miguel Yamamura Corporation (SMYC). Interestingly, SMYC is a subsidiary of San Miguel Corporation. Following the drastic event, the Skyway Stage 3 will now open in July 2020 and SMC will work 24x7 to meet the new and extended deadline, said SMC CEO, Ramon Ang.

"We are saddened by this unfortunate incident mainly because it will delay a vital infrastructure project that would have alleviated traffic woes of our motorists sooner. But rest assured, we will work 24/7 to endeavour to complete the entire project in five months. This is just a 3-month delay from the original opening target", stated Ang.

Reports coming from SMC suggest that the fire that swept the plastics warehouse likely arose from the DMCI construction yard. Besides that, SMC also mentioned that the company was already in thoughts of moving the warehouse to a different location and use the resources to build a transport and food terminal. "We continue to liaise with the concerned authorities to address all issues pertaining to the incident. It is fortunate that no one was harmed and we thank everybody who took the time to help fight the fire" added Ang.

Riders and drivers were quite excited to use the new 18.30-kilometre long elevated expressway. The new expressway is also said to fix Metro Manila traffic by 20% to 30%. Even though the figure seems to be small, the real difference will be huge, said DPWH Secretary Mark Villar. But with the sad event transpiring, we will now have to wait until July when the Skyway Stage 3 finally opens.

“What pains us is that we missed the opportunity to help motorists sooner with the opening of this road network. But what’s important now is that we get back to work right away and double our hard work. There will be no shortcuts and we will put all our resources on this effort", This incident is a reminder to all of us that right of way for all our infrastructure projects should be clear of fire hazards. We call on the Department of Public Works and Highways to continue to strictly enforce this to avoid similar incidents from happening", said Ang.

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