By Sam Escolano

Norconsult Management Services, Inc., the Independent Design Checker / Independent Certification Engineer for the Candaba 3^rd Viaduct Project, has submitted to the Toll Regulatory Board the recommendation and certification that the Project has been substantially completed on December 3, 2024.

The construction of the Candaba 3rd Viaduct has been one of NLEX Corporation’s major projects starting on February 2, 2023. The Project aims to improve the safety and convenience of the motoring public. It seeks to expand the viaduct’s traffic capacity. Additionally, the project focuses on extending the service life of the viaduct. In partnership with Leighton Contractors (Asia) Ltd. (“LCAL”), NLEX was able to complete the project way ahead of its original January 2, 2025 completion date. The final contract cost with LCAL, on the other hand, is below the original contract cost of PHP 6.12 Bn.

The accomplished feat by the team is not without any challenges. Significant weather disturbances impacted the project. Its access roads became flooded and inundated. To overcome this, NLEX and LCAL employed its best practices and cooperated with each other throughout the project.

The Candaba 3rd Viaduct was built between the two existing viaducts. It starts at Pulilan, Bulacan and ends at Apalit, Pampanga. The total length is 5.3 km. The Project used deep pile foundations. This addressed the swampy condition at its foundation. It also ensured stability during flooding or earthquakes. A major contributor in facilitating construction progress is the use of a monolithic girder deck design using pre-cast double-T girders.

On top of the completion of the Project, the Project team was able to implement temporary openings of the Project to respond to traffic needs during construction.  Zone 1 of the project was temporarily opened to the public on 15 August 2024. Zone 2 was temporarily opened on 22 October 2024.

The Project is set to be inaugurated on December 10, 2024.

---

---