The Skyway Conundrum

Being a northerner since birth, I didn't see myself living in the south, paying toll fees everyday. I was used to the hour-long jeep-LRT-jeep combo to and from work in Makati. Only when my wife and I were looking for a new place to move-in to, that I slightly considered living in the south. When the other options were out of our budget range, the south became the smart choice. I've been a southie for three years now.

Along East Service Road

Crunching the numbers I accepted the fact that we had to pay Php49.00 per entry and exit to and from Bicutan. That's Php98.00 per day or roughly Php3,000 in a month. For a year I got used to traversing the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) from Bicutan to Makati until I got tired of the morning stress it brings. Upon exit at Nichols toll plaza, you have to inch your way from left to right just to have a good position to exit to EDSA. I found a temporary solution entering through Magallanes but EDSA would still bring me my daily minimum requirement of stress. There's got to be a better way.

Enter: Skyway.

Skyway entry to Dona Soledad (Bicutan)

The Php98.00 per day toll fee was ridiculous for me to begin with, let alone jacking it up to Php144.00 per day to use the skyway. I used to mock the skyway users that they are paying much more to get stuck in traffic more. Who would've thought that it will become prophecy.

But it's just a Php23.00 toll difference per entry, I think I could handle that. Skyway did offer some advantages: A direct ramp to Makati (via Amorsolo), skipping the automobile braid at Nichols, and a perceived priority by the traffic enforcers along the Bicutan interchange. It did save us around 10-20 minutes of travel time until yesterday, January 29, 2018, the day skyway stood still.