CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – The P245.43-million bypass road in this province designed to provide an alternate route for motorists between Magalang town and Angeles City is expected to be completed by the end of this month.
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) acting Secretary Roger G. Mercado personally inspected project Friday. Started in 2019, the project includes the development of two-lane and four-lane roads with a total length of 2.605 kilometers, 1,080 kilometers of which are already existing. It also includes the construction of the 84-meter long North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) overpass.
Once completed the bypass road is expected to significantly ease the heavy traffic often experienced at the intersection of Magalang-Angeles Road and Don Aniceto Gueco Avenue.
“It will be a big relief to motorists if we can shorten to 30 minutes the previously long trip between Barangay Balibago in Angeles City to Magalang and as explained by DPWH Regional Director Roseller Tolentino, this road could serve as an alternative route and it will help to ease the heavy traffic experienced in Pulung Maragul Rotonda due to the large volumes of vehicles passing the area,” Mercado said during a briefing.
Aside from the bypass road, the DPWH official also inspected other projects being implemented in the province including the alternate DPWH-Central Luzon building site located within the regional office compound. It is a six-story multi-purpose structure with a total floor area of 25,530 square meters.
In a briefing, Tolentino informed the secretary that the first three floors of the building will serve as the new DPWH regional headquarters, while the remaining upper floors will be made the extension office and command center of the DPWH Management Committee that can be used in the event of any disaster.
Mercado then proceeded to the newly constructed standard office building of the Pampanga 1st District Engineering Office also inside the DPWH Regional Office III compound.
The new structure will provide employees with better mobility and a more convenient and work-friendly environment.
Meanwhile, the DPWH completed two connectivity projects in Nueva Ecija that are expected to boost local economies, provide safer and faster delivery of agricultural produce to markets, and offer the public comfortable travel and quicker access to social and healthcare services.
Armando Z. Manabat, chief of the DPWH-Nueva Ecija 1st District Engineering Office, said the two projects with total funding of PHP468 million are now open to motorists traveling from Sto. Domingo to the towns of Aliaga and Talavera.
“The DPWH firmly believes that the newly built roads and bridges will greatly contribute to the enhancement of inter-town connectivity in this part of Nueva Ecija,” Manabat said in a social media post on Friday.
The construction of the 2.20-kilometer road and the 90.80-meter bridge that traverses Barangay Dolores, Sto. Domingo and Barangay San Carlos, Aliaga in Nueva Ecija received a budget of P233.5 million while P234.4-million fund was released by the national government for the construction of a 2.47-kilometer road that now connects Barangay San Agustin in Sto. Domingo and Barangay Pag-asa in Talavera, also in Nueva Ecija.
Manabat said the recently-completed projects now provide motorists a seamless travel experience as the usual travel time between the municipalities has been reduced by over 50%.
“The drive time between Sto. Domingo and Talavera has been reduced to only 10 minutes from the former 30 minutes since motorists need no longer to pass through the usual traffic chokepoints along the Sicsican-Sto. Domingo Road and the section of Maharlika Highway where the business district of Talavera is located,” he said. (PNA)