MANILA, Philippines – A portion of the new Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Expressway will be open to motorists starting today.

“We are proud to deliver phase one of the NAIA Expressway, a project that we know many have been waiting for,” San Miguel Corp. (SMC) president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said in a statement yesterday.

Motorists will be able to use the expressway for free for the first month of operations.

The first phase of the P17.9-billion NAIA Expressway under the public-private partnership (PPP) program will link Macapagal Boulevard near the Entertainment City to NAIA Terminals 1 and 2.

The other segment of the toll road, which will connect NAIA Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, is expected to open by Christmas this year.

Upon completion, the project is expected to provide easy access to and from the NAIA.

The Department of Public Works and Highways said earlier the project is expected to cut average travel time between the Skyway System or South Luzon Expressway and the NAIA Terminal 1 to 8.2 minutes from approximately 24.3 minutes at present.

It is likewise expected to benefit 80,000 travelers per day.

“Finally, our countrymen will feel the benefit of having faster and more direct access to NAIA Terminals 1, 2 and 3,” Ang said.

“It will also go a long way in easing traffic congestion in surrounding cities and support growth in southern Metro Manila,” he added.

SMC, through subsidiary and concession firm Vertex Tollways Development Inc., bagged the PPP deal in 2013.

Under the contract with the government, SMC will operate the expressway for 30 years.