There will be a new expressway serving Metro Manila in the future and will be particularly interesting for those living east of the metropolis. And the work starts today.

Earlier this morning the Department of Transportation (DOTr) led by Secretary Arthur Tugade, together with executives from the San Miguel Corporation (SMC), held a groundbreaking ceremony for the South East Metro Manila Expressway (SEMME, the Circumferential Road 6 Expressway), a new toll road that will link Taguig, Rizal, Marikina, and Quezon City. 

The project, spearheaded by SMC and its subsidiaries, will be comprised of elevated and at-grade carriageways with up to three lanes in each direction. The southern terminus of the project will link up directly with the Skyway Stage 1 to FTI in Taguig and follow a path that passes through Taytay, Cainta, Marikina, and eventually at a main toll plaza near the Batasan Complex in Quezon City.

The DOTr say that this long term infrastructure project will be accomplished in two segments split up into 6 sections. Segment 1 - Section 1 (both 1A and 1B, 4.049 kilometers total) will be completed by 2020 and cost PhP 45 billion. The succeeding two sections of Segment 1, Section 2 and 3, will build a direct link from Skyway to Ortigas Avenue Extension.

Segment 2 (comprised of Sections 4 to 6) will span from Ortigas Avenue Extension to Batasan. When fully completed, the DOTr says travel time between Taguig and Quezon City using the 34.024 kilometer SEMME/C-6 Expressway will be reduced to just over 30 minutes.

Eventually the new expressway will be connected directly to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) as well.