Flagship infra projects among DU30 legacies

Chief President Legal Counsel Secretary Salvador Panelo on Saturday highlighted the accomplishments of the Duterte administration, particularly its flagship infrastructure projects.

One of the accomplishments under the Duterte administration was the rehabilitation of MRT-3 that traverses along EDSA from Taft Avenue to North Avenue where it currently operates 23 trains with speed of 60kph. Department of Transportation recorded zero unloading incidents.

He also highlighted the newly-opened Central Luzon Link Expressway highway intended to reduce travel time between Cabanatuan City and Tarlac City from 70 minutes to just only 20 minutes once it becomes fully operational. The expressway will also be toll-free.

The project is also part of the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program which would serve as east-west link on Central Luzon’s expressway network, ensuring uninterrupted traffic flow from Metro Manila to the provinces via North Luzon Expressway, Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway.

The ambitious infrastructure plan of the Duterte administration is made up of hundreds of projects throughout the country that will bring poverty relief, strong economy, and decongest traffic in Metro Manila.

From June 2016 to December 2020, there are 26,494 kilometers of roads; 10,376 flood control structures; and 5,555 bridges being built, renovated, and improved by the Department of Public Works and Highways to reduce travel time and to ensure motorist safety.

Among the finished and on-going large projects are the Skyway Stage 3, the San Fernando By-Pass Road, the Bulacan Pulilan-Baliuag Diversion Road, the Sorsogon City Coastal By-Pass Road, the TPLEX-Luzon Spine Expressway Network, and the Urdaneta City By-Pass Road.

The BGC-Ortigas Link Road which connects cities of Taguig, Makati, and Pasig was opened to the public last June 12. This improved the traffic flow in Guadalupe in EDSA.

Meanwhile, the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge was 70 percent completed as of 29 June. Around 30,000 cars would benefit from the infrastructure and it is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

The new terminal building of Clark International Airport, equipped with state-of-the-art technology can accommodate eight million passengers annually and this will alleviate air traffic congestion at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

The newly-opened Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge which connects the cities of Makati and Mandaluyong is expected to cater to 50,000 vehicles daily to decongest EDSA.

Panelo said the opening of the completed infrastructure projects will greatly help motorists, commuters, and tourists. It is expected to boost economic and tourism activities in different parts of the country.