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Friday, March 29, 2024

SLEX anomalies

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The South Luzon Expressway or SLEX is a big disappointment.  It’s operated more as a business enterprise rather than as a means of public service and convenience.

This major roadway dates back to 1967 during the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos.  Back then, land travel to southern Tagalog was through Cavite, or through Antipolo.  Because these routes were inconvenient, President Marcos created the SLEX, which was called the Manila South Diversion Road during those times.  The MSDR started at the Nichols area and ended at the Alabang-Zapote Road. 

Construction was completed in 1968, and toll collection began in 1970.  The expressway was world-class, toll fees were minimal, and tollway personnel were courteous.  An advertisement of a new memorial park along Sucat Road in Parañaque described the MSDR “a ten-lane superhighway.”

The MSDR was managed first by the Construction and Development Corporation and later by the Philippine National Construction Corporation. 

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By the end of the Marcos regime in 1986, the MSDR had already expanded as far as Calamba, Laguna.  It was eventually renamed the SLEX.

Under the administration of President Corazon Aquino, the SLEX fell into disrepair.  Many of its segments had potholes and poor lighting.  Signages were dilapidated.     

When Fidel Ramos was president, management of the SLEX transferred to a foreign corporation through a supplemental tollway operation agreement (STOA) approved by Ramos himself.  An elevated skyway from Nichols to Alabang was also constructed over the SLEX. 

Toll fees began skyrocketing when the SLEX management went to foreigners.  Although the expressway was repaired and usable again, the toll fees were very expensive.  

Sadly, the toll fees constantly increased through the years.  When the Carmona to Santa Rosa segment of the expressway was under construction, traffic was rerouted and motorists drove through muddy, rough roads.  Despite the delay and inconvenience the construction caused to motorists, the toll fees were still collected in full.

Everyday, SLEX road personnel create a counterflow at the segment between Sucat and Alabang to accommodate northbound vehicles, especially whenever a powerful politician is expected to head north from Alabang.  Naturally, this measure reduces the road space available to the southbound traffic at that segment.  Traffic inevitably accumulates on the southbound lane and delays those heading south. 

That counterflow is anomalous because motorists who use the southbound lane of the SLEX pay their toll fees in full, which thus entitles them to the full use and enjoyment of the entire width of the southbound lane.  Why charge these motorists full toll when they end up squirming in reduced road space? 

True, there are motorists on the northbound lane of the SLEX rushing to their respective destinations in the north, but they are not the only ones in a hurry.  Motorists on the southbound lane are likewise rushing to their respective destinations—office work at Alabang, court hearings in Laguna and Batangas, classes in Los Baños, etc.  Manifestly, therefore, the special treatment the SLEX management affords to northbound motorists is unwarranted.

Try complaining to any SLEX toll plaza employee about a traffic grievance; she will recite a mantra to the tune of “complain to the management, not to me.”  When a complaining motorist is persistent, armed security guards rush to the scene in an obvious attempt at visually intimidating the motorist.  Don’t they know that the SLEX is supposed to be operated for the benefit of the motoring public?

Decades ago, signages on the SLEX were clear and reflectorized.  Signs at toll plazas were adequately lit for motorists who use the expressway at night.  Last October, however, many of the signs along the northbound lane of the SLEX are no longer readable at night.  Over at the toll plazas at the Asian Hospital and at Nichols, there are no lights to illuminate the signs, thus making nighttime driving confusing at best, and risky at worst.  The approach to the SLEX entrance near the Asian Hospital has missing signages.  Motorists not familiar with the area often end up on the wrong side of the expressway.    

The electronic collection system of toll fees at the SLEX is supposed to speed up the processing of toll payments.  Under this scheme, an electronic sticker affixed to the windshield of a vehicle that is subscribed to the electronic collection system is supposed to be read by a computer at the toll plaza.  After a few seconds, the vehicle is allowed to proceed.  An electronic monitor at the toll plaza tells the driver the amount of credit left in the electronic sticker.

Vehicles subscribed to this electronic system must follow certain rules.  If their electronic stickers do not have enough credit for the toll, the driver concerned is penalized with a traffic ticket.  The said vehicles must use the electronic lanes designated at the toll plaza.  Vehicles which are not subscribed to the electronic system are not allowed to use the electronic lanes.  Erring drivers are made to pay a fine. 

 Lately, the rules on electronic toll payment are breached.  Many drivers of vehicles owned by politicians, especially local government officials, who do not like lining up at the cash payment lanes of toll plazas insist on using the electronic lanes even if they do not have any electronic sticker.  Instead of penalizing these inconsiderate parties, SLEX personnel accommodate them.  This special but anomalous accommodation is unfair for motorists who are compelled to line up at the cash payment lanes, and for the other motorists delayed at the electronic payment lanes because of politicians demanding special treatment at the toll plaza. 

Franchises may only be issued by the legislature. Therefore, a franchise may be amended only through another legislative act.  The franchise of the PNCC over the SLEX is a presidential decree which, under the 1973 Constitution, is a valid legislative act.  It appears, however, that the transfer of the management of the SLEX from the PNCC to another entity was made through a STOA—a mere executive agreement.  That’s another anomaly. 

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