The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced on Thursday that it will prioritize expanding lanes on EDSA before retrofitting the Guadalupe Bridge to minimize traffic congestion during construction.

“We’re not repairing the bridge, we’re strengthening it,” said DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral during the Build Better More (BBM) Infrastructure Forum. “We’ll expand EDSA’s capacity on both sides before tackling the bridge itself.”

The Guadalupe Bridge retrofitting project, connecting Makati and Mandaluyong, is expected to take 34 months and significantly disrupt traffic flow.

Cabral said the project design is complete, and they’re collaborating with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to manage traffic during construction.

“Ideally, we’d start this year,” Cabral said. “But Secretary (Manuel) Bonoan wants to finish the lane expansion first.”

To provide alternative routes, DPWH submitted a traffic management plan to the MMDA and is expediting construction of the NLEX-Skyway connector.

Cabral stressed the urgency of the project, citing a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) report warning of a potential magnitude 7 earthquake on the West Valley Fault. “If the bridge isn’t retrofitted, there will be a huge problem,” she said.

She also announced the construction of the Build Better More program’s most expensive project: the 32.14-kilometer Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge, with a price tag of P219 billion. Construction is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2024.

The bridge will significantly reduce travel time between Bataan and Cavite, from five hours to 45 minutes.

“The project’s detailed engineering design is nearly complete,” Cabral said. “Funding will come from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Asian Development Bank. Bidding for the first phase just concluded, and construction will hopefully start later this year or early next year.”