Newsletter_Jan-Feb 2011 Save PDF - Philippines Bases ...

In the News
SCTEX puts CL on road
to progress
by the BCDA Public Affairs Department
Central Luzon has been experiencing tremendous growth in tourism and investments, largely owing to
an efficient road network specifically the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) to meet the visitors’
demand for comfortable and speedy travel within the region, as well as to other places of interest in
other parts of mainland Luzon.
The state-owned BCDA, builder and owner of
the SCTEX said that since the SCTEX opened for
commercial operations in 2008, there has been a
steady increase in investments not only in Clark and
Subic but also in the neighboring provinces that
connect to the alignment of the SCTEX.
Citing figures made public by the Clark International
Airport Corp., the BCDA officials said there are about
60,000 Koreans in Clark and Subic at any given time.
Koreans account for the biggest number of foreign
arrivals at the Diosdado Macapagal International
Airport (DMIA) at the Clark Freeport Zone.
“The developments now unfolding in Central Luzon
augur well for the realization of our vision of a strong
economy anchored on high-impact government
infrastructure projects such as the SCTEX which was
built to create a growth engine in the countryside,”
SCTEX Program Manager and Spokesperson Robert
Gervacio said.
He noted that the SCTEX, together with the DMIA in
Clark and the deep water seaport in Subic are the
moving force designed to develop the region into
a globally competitive logistics hub. “We are now
unmistakably moving towards that direction,” he
added.
To cope with the expected 60 percent increase in
passenger traffic, SEAIR is deploying two big-body
114-seater Airbus 319 planes to service the Clark-
Singapore connection.
Last October, South Korea’s budget carrier Jin Air,
had its maiden Incheon-Clark flight. Using a 180-seater
Boeing 737-800, Jin Air now flies to Clark five times a
week. Other air carriers being hosted by Clark are
Asiana Airlines which also serves the Clark-Incheon
route, Tiger Airways which flies daily to Singapore,
and Air Asia which also flies daily to Kuala Lumpur
and Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia.
Metro Manila-bound motorists from Central and
Northern Luzon are also afforded seamless overland
travel courtesy of the linkage between the SCTEX
and the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).
Likewise, motorists from Manila will find it more
convenient to use the SCTEX on their way to Central
and Northern Luzon especially Pampanga, Bataan,
Subic Bay, Zambales, Pangasinan, Baguio, La Union,
Cabanatuan and Ilocos as they will find it to be the
fastest, most convenient and practical route saving
on time and fuel.
Over the past years, the DMIA
has been attracting more
air carriers, indicating that it
is a viable alternative to the
normally overcrowded Ninoy
Aquino International Airport in
Metro Manila.
Just last Dec. 16, the South
East Asian Airlines (SEAIR)
inaugurated its regular Clark-
Singapore-Clark route at
the DMIA. SEAIR, reputedly
the second oldest airline
in the country next to the
Philippine Airlines, has been
linking Clark to key cities
nationwide, notably Cebu
and Davao, along with the
world-renowned island resort
of Boracay.
Subic-Clark Stretch of SCTEX
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