The Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) P230 million pesos underpass road project is set to begin its construction along the Maharlika Highway diversion road, bypassing traffic on the outskirts of Lucena City.
DPWH-Lucena City district engineer Nestor Cleofas, headed the groundbreaking project ceremony last Tuesday morning and was attended by Public Works Secretary Mark Villar, Quezon Rep. Vicente Alcala, Lucena Mayor Rhoderick Alcala and other local government officials from neighboring towns.
According to Cleofas, the 419-meter long underpass road would start after the Dumacaa bridge and end before the approach of the Iyam bridge. Lucena is wedged between the Dumacaa on the east and the Iyam on the west.
A budget of P100 million for the first phase of the underpass road project would be completed in eight months time and “if the remaining P130 million of the project fund would release immediately, this whole road project will be finished in the middle of next year.”
Cleofas said, “the project will decongest traffic and around 70 percent of the daily motorists, in the Manila-Bicol bound, will no longer stop at the intersection and continue their travel unhampered.”
Cleofas said the completion of the 11-kilometer diversion road would lessen the heavy flow of motorists from Manila to Bicol and vice versa. Heavy traffic has periodically made a chokepoint at the intersection of the diversion road and the Lucena-Tayabas road in Barangay Gulang-Gulang even after a road widening.
According to DPWH Secretary Mark Villar, the project is one of his department’s initiatives to decongest the traffic in the country. To speed up the flow of motorists in all parts of the country.
Villar said, “DPWH will be constructing more than 200 diversion roads from north to south, across the country.” - JCE.
source: Inquirer
