Tarlac City Interchange, the western terminus of CLLEX, as seen from SCTEX
Phase 1
From the west, CLLEX begins at a trumpet interchange with the Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) and Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway (TPLEX) in Tarlac City. The expressway intersects Santa Rosa–Tarlac Road at a diamond interchange where the expressway passes above grade. The expressway then passes agricultural land before turning east and entering La Paz. It crosses La Paz–Victoria Road, where an interchange serving entering westbound vehicles and exiting eastbound vehicles connects the two. The expressway continues east as it crosses through a viaduct over the Rio Chico River and crosses the Tarlac–Nueva Ecija boundary before crossing the Talavera River.
The expressway then continues east as it enters Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija. It turns northeast as it meets the Zaragoza interchange, a trumpet interchange connecting with Zaragoza–Aliaga Road. It makes a reverse curve, turning southeast before crossing Guimba–Aliaga Road as it enters Aliaga, then San Juan, where the exit is built as the expressway's current terminus.
History
In 2010, the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) formulated the creation of an expressway network under the High Standard Highway Network Development Master Plan, focusing on a growth area within 200 km (120 mi) of Metro Manila. The DPWH, under JICA's assistance, completed the feasibility study for the proposed Central Luzon Expressway (CLEX) the same year.
The proposed project was to divided into two (2) phases: Phase 1 with a 30.7 km (19.1 mi) network beginning from the connection of SCTEX and TPLEX in Balingcanaway, Tarlac City and ends at the Pan-Philippine Highway (Daang Maharlika) in Caalibangbangan, Cabanatuan; and Phase 2 with 35.7 km (22.2 mi) network beginning from the Phase 1 terminus in Cabanatuan and ends at San Jose town proper.[6]
The project was renamed to Central Luzon Link Expressway (CLLEX) in 2011 after the preparatory survey and final report plan for Phase 1 was concluded.[7]
JICA would fund the construction of the 66.4-kilometer (41.3 mi) CLLEX, while operation and maintenance would be under the public-private partnership (PPP) scheme. The construction of the CLLEX Phase 1 project was funded through the Official Development Assistance (Japan) grant of ¥22,796,000,000 (₱11.87 billion, March 2012 exchange rate) at a signing agreement ceremony by the Foreign Affairs SecretaryAlberto Romulo and Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Toshinao Urabe.[8]
In President Benigno Aquino III's State of the Nation address in 2014, the CLLEX was mentioned as one of the administration's priority projects involving massive infrastructure spending in Central Luzon.[9]
In 2015, Manila North Tollways Corporation (later NLEX Corporation) was interested in a public auction for CLLEX Phase 2 through the PPP scheme.[10][11] However, the bidding for the project never went through.
The groundbreaking ceremony and the beginning of construction were held on September 22, 2017.[12] The expressway was originally planned to open in December 2020 but was repeatedly delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first 18 kilometers (11 mi) of the expressway from Tarlac City to Aliaga was inaugurated by President Rodrigo Duterte on July 15, 2021. The expressway opened to vehicles on the same day.[13]
In July 2022, DPWH announced that CLLEX would be completed by July 2024. The current Phase 1 terminus in Aliaga will see an extension of 7 kilometers (4.3 mi) up to the San Juan Interchange and 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) to Umangan–Julo Road before ending at Felipe Vergara Highway and the Pan–Philippine Highway.[14]
In August 2022, SMEC was appointed a consultant and a transaction advisor. This also provided services for developing the expressway's second phase and the operations and maintenance under PPP.[15]
In April 2024, Hermogenes Ebdane, the Regional Development Council's Sectoral Committee on Infrastructure Development and the Regional Peace and Order Council in Central Luzon, announced that CLLEx right-of-way had been resolved, adding that affected landowners who established barricades along the route had dismantled them.[16]
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