Several houses have been demolished to give way to the road widening project of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-11 in Davao City. MindaNews file photo
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 30 April) — The ongoing construction of the Davao Catalunan Pequeño-Ulas Viaduct will be completed “within three months” as soon as the electric poles that are delaying the project are removed, an official of the Department of Public Works and Highways-Region 11 (DPWH-11) said.
The project runs along the junction of Davao-Bukidnon Road and the national highway and junction of the Davao-Bukidnon Road and Talomo-Puan Bypass Road, which are currently closed.
Peter Roque, DPWH-11 project engineer told the city council in session Tuesday that they can continue the project if Davao Light and Power Co. will allow them to remove their posts and wires that are obstructing the areas where they will put up bridge columns.
“Around three months… that’s the plan, we will partially open, not for commuters, but for private vehicles,” Roque replied to Vice Mayor Jay Melchor Quitain, who asked when will the road be passable, assuming the obstructing electric wires will be removed.
The DPWH official said there are two columns where they cannot install troughs due to electrical wires, causing the delay.
He said they are also planning to put up 10 columns to support a flyover along the closed road.
Construction of the P3.3-billion viaduct started in February 2021. It includes gutters, a flyover, sidewalk, and drainage structure.
Since its construction, the junction of Davao-Bukidnon Road and the National Highway to the junction of Davao-Bukidnon Road and Talomo-Puan Bypass Road has been closed to all vehicles.
City Councilor Alberto Ungab said the closure has caused traffic congestion for the past two to three years.
Ungab asked DPWH-11 if they had the necessary permits to close a six-lane highway for more than three years, saying the closure was “too long that economic activity stopped” along the highway.
“I hadn’t seen a project, especially in the highways, that we close that highway totally. This was asked last year and you [DPWH-11] were saying that you will be able to give up at least a lane. Up to now there is no response to that,” he said.
“That’s six lanes closed to traffic for three years already, but in other projects, there should be an intended lane for passersby,” the city councilor added.
Roque said their road closure permit expired in March, and that they plan to apply for one this year.
He said opening the road to the public is not recommended because it is not safe due to the ongoing construction, and they could not accommodate a large volume of vehicles.
Ungab said it is illegal to close roads without a permit, and that Roque should rather “focus on ways to open the road, not to extend its closure”.
“If they should plan to ask for an extension of their [road closure] permit, they should also provide a plan for opening a road after the permit,” he said.
Meanwhile, Davao Light president and COO Rodger Velasco assured the city council they will coordinate with the DPWH-11, National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, and Davao City Water District to identify which poles and wirings should be removed first.
“The poles there, we call them bolt power assets. These are 69,000 volts carrying poles that serve more or less 100,000 customers including Davao City Water District hubs, that’s why we are very sensitive to the interruptions of those poles,” Velasco said.
DPWH-11 spokesperson Dean Ortiz said further concerns about roads will be raised and coordinated with the City Transport and Traffic Management Board (CTTMB) and water and electric utilities.
“We had a coordination meeting on April 4, and we have yet to meet again. We have an established group chat for that purpose composed of the CTTMB, CTTMO, and DPWH project engineers. This group chat is solely for coordination of our traffic management plans,” Ortiz said.
He said they committed to abide by CTTMB’s set of guidelines or policy resolutions to prevent or even minimize problems concerning roads.
On March 6, Mayor Sebastian Duterte posted a statement on his Facebook page, calling the attention of DPWH-11 and all other entities and contractors to immediately comply and coordinate with the CTTMB and to secure necessary permits before conducting any activity “that will impair road conditions in the city.”
“We have noticed passable roads that are in good condition, which you already started to break and excavate while there are still a lot of road projects that are left unfinished. These are all causing inconvenience and pose risk to the safety of the public,” Duterte said. (Ian Carl Espinosa/MindaNews)
