Repair on SCTEX to start as soon as weather improves

CLARK FREEPORT, Pampanga, Philippines – Repair of an eroded section of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX) in Porac will start as soon as the weather improves, but it will take weeks before the section could be fully restored, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) said yesterday.

Joshua Bingcang, BCDA project manager for SCTEX, said he does not know the exact damage cost, pending a technical assessment by engineers.

A section of SCTEX from Clark South going to Porac remains closed to ensure the safety of motorists, but the Clark-Tarlac section is open to all vehicular traffic.

Bingcang noted that only the southern abutment of the bridge was affected by erosion but the bridge itself, which spans across the Pasig-Potrero river in Porac, remained solid.

Erosion of nearby lands blocked the path of rampaging waters in the river channel, causing the waters to shift course and pound on the lower part of the abutment, which collapsed during the heavy monsoon rains Monday afternoon.

The damaged section created a two-meter gap between the bridge and the approach and was about 20 meters wide.

The Pasig-Potrero river used to be an active lahar channel emanating from the slopes of Mt. Pinatubo. In 1995, lahar from the river buried almost the entire Bacolor town in Pampanga.

The government of Japan, through Japan Bank for International Cooperation, funded the construction of the P34-billion SCTEX.

The Manila North Tollway Corp. (MNTC) has been operating the SCTEX for five years now, but the state-owned BCDA is still its owner, Bingcang said.

MNTC is a unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp, a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. chaired by Manuel V. Pangilinan.