MANILA, Philippines — Work on some of the flagship infrastructure projects of the Duterte administration has resumed as the government eased quarantine restrictions in some areas.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said among the projects that have resumed are the Harbor Link, North Luzon Expressway - South Luzon Expressway (NLEX-SLEX) Connector, the Cavite-Laguna Expressway, Skyway Stage 3, the R1 Bridge Project, Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway and Subic Freeport Expressway.
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"The construction of some of the flagship projects have resumed," Roque said at a press briefing.
Roque said the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) does not have the exact number of projects that have resumed for now because it would depend on the managers' compliance with construction safety guidelines.
The P9-billion NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is a 5.58-kilometer, six-lane divided elevated expressway connecting McArthur Highway and C-3. The NLEX-SLEX Connector involves the construction and operation and maintenance of an eight-kilometer four-lane elevated expressway over the Philippine National Railway right of way.
The P23-billion project starts from C3 Road in Caloocan through Manila crossing Espana towards the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Sta. Mesa linking Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3.
The Cavite-Laguna Expressway is a four-lane 44.20-kilometer closed-system tolled expressway connecting Cavite Expressway and SLEX. The P35.68-billion project will start from the CAVITEX in Kawit, Cavite and end at the SLEX-Mamplasan Interchange in Biñan, Laguna. The Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 is a 14.82-kilometer, six-lane elevated toll road and the last of three stages of Metro Manila Skyway System. The project will link SLEX at Alabang to Balintawak in Quezon City.
The R1 bridge project is one of the projects that aims to ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila while the Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway extension project involves the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of a 59.4 km four-lane extension from Rosario to San Juan, La Union. The NLEX Corp. held the groundbreaking for the construction of the Subic Freeport Expressway expansion project last September.
Earlier, the DPWH announced that the construction of infrastructure projects in areas that have been placed under the more relaxed general community quarantine (GCQ) would resume partially.
The government has issued detailed safety guidelines on construction work, including requiring workers to remain in their quarters for the entire duration of the project and limiting the persons who may enter construction sites. Supervisors are required to monitor personnel for coronavirus symptoms, ensure that the construction sites are disinfected and implement social distancing measures. For government projects, DPWH engineers are required to ensure strict compliance with the wearing of additional personal protective equipment.
Malacañang previously said the government won't drop the 'Build, Build, Build' infrastructure program even if it needs huge funds to buy medical supplies and to provide aid to sectors affected by the pandemic. Finance secretary Carlos Dominguez III has said the flagship infrastructure projects would not be downgraded because they would fuel the country's "bounce back plan.”