MANILA, Philippines - Heavy traffic is expected along EDSA when the Department of Public Works and Highways starts a major rehabilitation of the highway that will last for a year, an official of the DPWH said yesterday.
Danilo Idos, director of the DPWH-Urban Road Projects Office, said they will begin the rehabilitation of the 23-kilometer stretch of EDSA, from Roxas Boulevard to Monumento, in June this year.
He said they are still finalizing details on some aspects of the project and that it may take six months before they implement the repairs.
Idos said that aside from the traffic management plan that would be submitted to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), they also need to seek the support of the Regional Development Council.
The DPWH has been making selective repairs along EDSA, but it has never embarked on a major rehabilitation of the primary thoroughfare in Metro Manila.
Idos said the planned rehabilitation of EDSA is part of the preparation for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, which the Philippines will be hosting in 2015.
"The roads should be paved by that time, the riding surface of the roads should be world-class,” he said.
The DPWH official said that a study showed that 50,000 square meters of the highway needs to undergo concrete re-blocking.
The DPWH estimated the project cost to P3.7 billion. For this year, it has allocated P3 billion while the remaining P700 million will be sourced from the agency’s budget for 2014.
Traffic measures
Idos said they have divided the project into three packages. Package 1-A covers Roxas Boulevard in Pasay City to Megamall/Julia Vargas street in Mandaluyong City; Package 1-B from Megamall to Trinoma in Quezon City; and Package 1-C from Trinoma to Monumento in Caloocan City.
He said they have taken measures to decongest traffic buildup along EDSA during the period of the repair.
During weekdays, DPWH workers would only work on one lane and place intervals. For instance, the DPWH would start working on the 150 meters per lane, but the succeeding 200 meters would be spared from repairs and be allocated for the “weaving” of the motorists. This alternate procedure would be spread throughout a project package.
During weekends, they would expand the coverage of the repairs to three lanes, leaving only two lanes for vehicular traffic.
Since the repairs would be done during the rainy months, Idos said they would be using measures to ensure that the quality of the cement re-blocking with asphalt overlay would be preserved.
Consultation needed
The DPWH needs to hold consultation with the public and local government units before it starts the year-round rehabilitation of EDSA, the MMDA said yesterday.
DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson was earlier quoted as saying that the project is now on its final stage of planning.
Meanwhile, MMDA general manager Corazon Jimenez said the DPWH has yet to present its plan to the MMDA, which has traffic jurisdiction over EDSA.
“As much as we want to have EDSA fixed, the process must pass through consultation with the public and the affected LGUs,” Jimenez said.
EDSA starts in Caloocan City and passes through Quezon City, San Juan City, Mandaluyong City, Makati City, and ends in Pasay City.
Jimenez said the affected LGUs should be consulted on where traffic will be diverted.
“This project needs participative discussion,” she added.
No comments:
Post a Comment