The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved nearly $1.7 billion in financing for the construction of a climate-resilient expressway under the Laguna Lakeshore Road Network Project (LLRN).
In a statement on Thursday, the ADB said the 37.5-kilometer (km) expressway will promote regional connectivity as it is seen to reduce travel time between Manila and the province of Laguna.
Under the project, the multilateral agency will fund the construction of a 29.56-km section of the new expressway, including bridges and viaducts that will traverse waterways flowing into the Laguna Lake.
The project aims to provide the most resilient road link within the southern Manila transport corridor and cut peak hour travel time between Taguig City in Metro Manila to Calamba City, Laguna province by 25 percent.
The remaining 7.89-km northern section of the new expressway will be funded by a $904.35- million loan from the Export–Import Bank of Korea, Economic Development Cooperation Fund under a parallel financing scheme.
“This investment further cements ADB’s commitment to help transform our host country’s transport infrastructure by facilitating climate- and disaster-resilient and sustainable development,” ADB country director for the Philippines Pavit Ramachandran said.
“The project will help link people to jobs and business opportunities, reduce transport costs and traffic congestion, and improve the efficiency of the overall transport network in Metro Manila and nearby regions,” he added.
ADB’s support to LLRN will be via a multi-tranche financing facility consisting of two loans: a $1.2 billion first tranche loan and a $509.5 million second tranche loan.
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is cofinancing the project with an additional $188.2 million loan.
The ADB loan includes climate financing of $35.6 million to cover mitigation and adaptation measures, including elevating viaducts and construction of armored lakeside embankments.
The LLRN is part of ADB’s holistic support to strengthening climate-resilient infrastructure in the Philippines.
This range of support includes assistance in developing the Laguna Lake master plan and climate-resilient infrastructure standards, and the implementation of climate plans as specified in the country’s Nationally Determined Contribution and National Adaptation Plan.
