TACLOBAN CITY—The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has announced the completion of major components of the Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project, which is part of the Build, Build, Build program of the Duterte administration in Eastern Visayas.
On Monday, June 27, the 161-meter Simora Bridge in Northern Samar province was opened to motorists.
The Simora Bridge and the eight-km paved two-lane road, both located in Laoang town, are parts of the Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project, which started in 2018. It aimed to connect the Pacific towns of Laoang, Palapag, and Catubig.
The DPWH, in a statement, said what is remaining of the P1.126 billion worth of the project is the ongoing construction of the 31-meter Jangtud Bridge 1 and the 69-meter Jangtud Bridge 2, which are now at 66% and 40% complete, respectively. Both bridges are in Palapag.
“After four years of challenging construction, the partial opening of the Samar Pacific Coastal Road is a huge step to the realization of a vision to provide comfortable and improved interconnectivity that will support sustainable agricultural development, contribute to food self-sufficiency and sustain peace and development efforts in Northern Samar,” said Undersecretary Emil Sadain, the chief implementer of the Build Build Build program, in a statement.
Sadain said the 11.60-km Samar Pacific Coastal Road Project was delayed due to the inclement weather and the pandemic.
The project is undertaken by the Ilsung Construction Co., Ltd of South Korea whose government funded it.
The DPWH said 80 percent of the 1,411 households residing in nine barangays located along the stretch of the project could benefit from its opening. The families living along this project depend on coconut planting and rice farming.
Governor Edwin Ongchuan said that with the partial opening of the project, the insurgency problem of the province would also be addressed.
“There is an adage that says that insurgency ends when the road begins. The provincial government is very optimistic that this road project will contribute to the eradication of the local armed conflict in this part of Northern Samar,” the governor said.