Transportation
The city is a major hub of transportation services within the province and the region. Cabanatuan City has a large number of bus companies operating provincial and regional routes, with the Cabanatuan Central Transport Terminal serving as the terminus. Jeepney operators serve routes within the province with some reaching as far to Dingalan, Aurora. Much of the city's population rely on public transportation such as tricycles and jeeps to get around the city.
Maharlika Highway (or Pan-Philippine Highway) is the main highway traversing the city where most vehicles going to Cagayan Valley pass through, another major highway is the Nueva Ecija - Aurora Road which links Cabanatuan to Baler, Aurora passing through rural towns in Nueva Ecija. Burgos Avenue and Del Pilar Street serve as the city's main thoroughfare inside the downtown area. Other major roads include the General Tinio and Rizal Streets which runs through the city proper in an east-west direction, Mabini Street where two of the city's universities are situated and the Circumferential Road that connects the downtown area to the Kapitan Pepe residential district.
Two bypass roads were constructed during the early 2000s to decongest the Maharlika Highway and to spur new developments outside the downtown area. One is the Felipe Vergara Highway which provides a direct route to the neighboring municipalities of Talavera and Aliaga, and the other is the Emilio Vergara Highway which directly links the Sumacab - Lakewood area to the Nueva Ecija - Aurora Road.
Cabanatuan was served by the Manila Railroad Company way back in the 1900s through the Balagtas - Cabanatuan line and was later abandoned after the war when scavengers have looted pieces of the rail tracks. Rail service was later resumed in 1969 after the rehabilitation of the rail tracks as mandated by a government order, the service was again abandoned in the 1980s when the route didn't fare much to the commuters. The old Cabanatuan Railway Station is located at Barangay General Luna and is converted to a day care center with the original structure remaining.
Infrastructure improvements are ongoing with projects done by the administration. All key intersections in the city are already signalized. Bicycle and tricycle lanes are currently being built while road widening of the Maharlika Highway from the present four lanes to eight lanes is on the drawing board. Road widening of all city and arterial roads from one/two-lane highway to three-lane highway is also being considered.
Three proposed expressways will pass through Cabanatuan City if built, these are North Luzon East Expressway, Tarlac-Nueva Ecija-Aurora Expressway and the Central Luzon Expressway linking Tarlac City to San Jose City.
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