CH endorsement sought for DPWH road project

CEBU, Philippines - The Department of Public Works and Highways is asking the city’s endorsement of the proposed Cebu City-San Remigio Road Project that will be implemented by the national government under the Private-Public-Partnership thrust of President Benigno Aquino III.

DPWH-7 director Pedro S. Herrera, through city planning and development officer Alipio Bacalso, requested an endorsement from Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama as it is one of the pre-requisites for the project to be endorsed by the Regional Development Council in Central Visayas.

The Cebu City-San Remegio Road Project, according to Herrera, will be funded by the People’s Republic of China.

“Please be informed that the DPWH-Central Office, Manila, has signified to pursue the above project, a segment of which covering from Capitol Site to Subangdaku (with intermittent sections) is within your area of jurisdiction,” Herrera said.

In a memorandum to DPWH-7, assistant secretary for planning and PPP Maria Catalina E. Cabral directed Herrera to secure the endorsement of the RDC which shall be submitted to the planning service for eventual submission to the National Economic and Development Authority– Investment Coordination Committee as required by the financing institution.

The proposed road project will cover 109.45 kilometers starting from Capitol Building to Hagnaya Wharf in San Remigio town.

The project will traverse some 26 existing permanent and concrete bridges, of which, two are recommended for placement. The road project shall rehabilitate or improve the conditions of the road.

The route has been identified in the past as one of the nautical highways to link the entire country through the RORO system that reduced the travel time from Mindanao through Visayas to Luzon by 10 hours and reduced the travel cost by 40 percent.     - (THE FREEMAN)