[ Manila Bulletin Online ] August 31, 2008
By DEXTER A. SEE
BAGUIO CITY – The upcoming operation of the San Fernando airport in La Union and the immediate completion of the 84-kilometer Tarlac-La Union toll expressway will surely perk up tourism, agriculture, and economic development in Baguio City and the entire Cordillera.
The San Fernando airport is expected to resume flight operations by October, this year following the completion of the first phase of the half-billion-peso upgrading project funded by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA).
The San Fernando airport is part of the Poro Point Freeport Zone being managed by the Poro Point Management Corp. (PPMC), a subsidiary of the BCDA.
The Tarlac-La Union Toll Expressway Project on the other hand, is being implemented by Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and will be completed and is expected to be operational by 2011.
Johnny dela Cruz, president of the Baguio-Benguet Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (BBCCII), said the overflowing development in the city which comes as a result of the completion of the vital infrastructure facilities would also benefit the surrounding communities such as the towns of Itogon, La Trinidad, Sablan, and Tuba, all in Benguet.
With the expected influx of investors in Baguio and Benguet and with the operation of the San Fernando airport and the Tarlac-La Union toll expressway, he said, employment will be provided to thousands of people and there will be sufficient opportunities for livelihood that would help uplift the living condition of families in urban centers.
The Tarlac-La Union toll expressway will be connected to the BCDA’s flagship project, the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX).
The entire 94-kilomete SCTEX is now open for commercial operations. Recently, one of the country’s major bus companies, Victory Liner, started taking the SCTEX Clark-Tarlac route to Baguio, cutting travel time from six hours to four hours.
Aside from the reduced travel time, travel will be safer and more convenient as the buses need not take the narrower and sometimes unevenly paved national road. An added bonus for using the SCTEX is the considerable amount of fuel savings due to non-stop driving. It will only be a matter of time before other bus companies and cargo trucks will follow suit.
Dela Cruz said the provision of access is an integral part of the country’s tourism, agricultural and economic development, and SCTEX and the Tarlac-La Union toll expressway, which will be operational soon, would improve the delivery of goods to any part of Northern Luzon in a short time.
Moreover, locators in the economic zone here will now have alternatives in the use of transportation means to bring their products to Clark and Subic via the inter-connected expressways. They could opt to maximize the use of the San Fernando airport which is much nearer to the city. They could cut travel time and expenses in the transport of their products.
Tourism, agricultural, and economic development in Central and Northern Luzon is in an upbeat mood following the full operation of SCTEX.
The Clark-Tarlac segment of the SCTEX opened last July 25, while the Subic-Clark segment started commercial operation last April 28.
