http://www.visitmyphilippines.com/ RSS feed en-us Copyright (C) 2014 visitmyphilippines.com Good roads enable economic growth. With the new North Luzon Expressway providing a gateway to Central and Northern Luzon , visitors and investors have gained access to the provinces north of Metro Manila. As envisioned by its builders, the expressway will be the catalyst that shall spur economic development in the regions. By facilitating travel, it will bring about greater mobility for people, easier and faster commodity flow, expanded tourist traffic, increased investments, and higher land values. Increased investments. With the reduced travel time to Central and Northern Luzon , the NLEX has made the two regions more accessible to the National Capital Region. Since every kilometer of paved roads and bridges is utilized and maximized by about 220,000 office employees and workers every year, economic activity in these two regions is expected to accelerate. This will attract more investments, which, in turn, will result in the creation of additional jobs and the generation of wealth in the regions. Higher traffic. As travel up north has become safer and more convenient, the influx of local and international visitors is expected to rise in the provinces of Northern Luzon . NLEX has become a key access to these places, allowing more people to view nature's beauty and the rich historical heritage of the northern provinces . With the operations of the modernized expressway, an additional 210,000 tourists each year is expected to visit Regions 1 to 3 and the Cordillera Administrative Region. An expected rise in GDP. According to a study by the University of the Philippines Planning and Development Research Foundation, Inc. (UP Planades) , good road quality fast-tracks development. Every kilometer of paved roads and bridges is projected to yield P20 million annually in gross value added. Each kilometer of good quality road for every thousand population yields P18,000 in per capita gross regional domestic product (GRDP) annually. Based on these findings, NLEX's 433 lane kilometers are expected to bring about an increase of P7.79 million in per capita GRDP every year. This figure multiplied by the current population in nearby provinces reached through the NLEX results in a GDP running into hundreds of millions of pesos. Appreciation of land values. The development impact of a state-of-the art road infrastructure will be felt along a corridor up to 15 kilometers wide on both sides of the NLEX, covering most of the towns of Bulacan and Pampanga, and extending up to Capas, Tarlac. Because of the increased value to the provinces brought about by the modern expressway, land values are expected to appreciate by P1,054 per square meter, with the overall increase in the price of land reaching 52%. http://www.visitmyphilippines.com/index.php?title=The North Luzon Expressway&func=all&pid=3645&Page=1&tbl=0&view=rss Sat, 28 Apr 2007 06:31:30 +0800