KEY ARTERY This portion of the Maharlika Highway in Bunawan, Agusan del Sur, is part of the 122-kilometer stretch of highway in the province that has been allotted P3.19 billion for rehabilitation. —DEPARTMENT OF PUBLICWORKS AND HIGHWAYS PHOTO
SAN FRANCISCO, AGUSAN DEL SUR—After having been criticized for its potholes and cracks that locals said have always been there for as long as they can remember, the Agusan del Sur segment of the Maharlika Highway has finally been allocated a budget for repair this year.
According to top officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) here, the 122-kilometer stretch of road in the province has been allotted P3.19 billion this year, the largest share of the P4.4-billion budget for the major road rehabilitation along the national highway that connects Surigao City and Davao City.
READ: Agusan del Sur highway to get P5B for repairs
The poor condition of the highway in the province caught the attention of netizens, who attended the celebration of Prosperidad town’s Naliyagan Festival last year.
It also prompted Rep. Romeo Momo of Surigao del Sur’s first district to urge DPWH officials to come up with a specialized program to address the deteriorating road conditions between the towns of San Francisco to Trento in Agusan del Sur.
45 projects
Pol delos Santos, regional director of DPWH in Caraga, said a total of 45 projects had been included in the General Appropriations Act this year to improve the condition of Maharlika Highway from Barangay Lipata in Surigao City, Surigao del Norte to Barangay Langkilaan in Trento, Agusan del Sur.
Of the 45 road rehabilitation projects, 29 are in Agusan del Sur, 13 of them being implemented by the province’s first engineering district and 16 by the province’s second engineering district.
Agusan del Norte was also allotted P456.78 million for six road repair projects; Surigao del Norte, P519.91 million for seven projects; and Butuan City, P275.34 million for three projects all along the national highway.
Delos Santos said the projects along the Maharlika Highway in Caraga would include preventive maintenance, asphalt overlaying, major repair and widening of roads and bridges, concrete reblocking and installations of road safety measures such as pavement markings and signage.
Major trunkline
He said they would see to it that the projects would be done swiftly and monitored closely as these had been given priority by the current administration because of the highway’s role as a major trunkline in the country and in line with recent directive of President Marcos to repair damaged roads following recent flooding and earthquakes in the Caraga region.
“We are speeding up the preconstruction requirements of these projects. Some of the projects have already finished procurement and are now ready for implementation. Once all requirements are met, we will start construction works immediately,” Delos Santos said.
Momo earlier urged the DPWH to reconsider the thickness of the concrete road pavement, suggesting it should be increased from the current 9-10 inches to 12-14 inches for greater durability and a longer lifespan of 30-40 years.
Momo, a former DPWH director in Caraga, attributed the premature deterioration of the road along the Agusan to Surigao stretch to fault lines affecting certain sections of the highway and the overloading of 10-wheeler trucks that often passed this highway. INQ