Conglomerate San Miguel Corporation (SMC) on Tuesday, October 13, announced that the long-awaited Skyway Stage 3 project has been completed ahead of its October 31 target.

In a statement, SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said the tollway will be opened to public once ready.

“After many challenges this project faced in previous years, the dream of connecting north and south and providing an alternative to EDSA is now a reality,” said Ang.

“We’re very excited to open Skyway 3 to the public. We just have to wait for the weather to improve so we can make sure that the asphalt will cure properly. That and a few more finishing touches are all that’s needed, and then we can open soon,” he also said.

The 17.93-kilometer Skyway Stage 3 is one of the 23 big-ticket infrastructure projects that the Department of Public Works and Highways eyed to help ease congestion along EDSA.

The new tollway is linked to the Skyway Stage 2 in Buendia, and therefore will cut travel time from the North Luzon Expressway to South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) to 20 minutes, from around 3 hours through EDSA.

SMC said in a statement that travel from Magallanes in Makati City to Balintawak in Quezon City, and Balintawak to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City, would take only about 15 minutes.

Valenzuela City to Makati City, meanwhile, would take 10 minutes through the new tollway.

The Skyway extension – which would connect the SLEX to the Skyway near Susana Heights and the Muntinlupa-Cavite Expressway – is targeted to be completed by December, said SMC on Tuesday.

The construction of the Skyway Stage 3 started in 2014, but the completion date was postponed several times due to delays and right-of-way issues. – Rappler.com