About 1,688 kilometers of tourism roads are programmed for implementation in the P30.9-billion 2018 Tourism Road Infrastructure Program (TRIP).

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said in a statement that under the TRIP, a convergence program of the DPWH and the Department of Tourism (DoT), about 677 road projects, spanning 1,688 kilometers, across 16 regions in the country are programmed for implementation in the 2018 TRIP allocation.

Among the tourism road projects in the 2018 Program include access roads leading to Mapita Tribal Community in Pangasinan; New Clark City; Callao Caves in Tuguegarao City; Buscalan in Kalinga which is also known as the home of the last mambabatok, Apo Whang Od; Seven Cities in Iloilo; La Paz, Zamboanga City; Dahilayan Adventure Park in Bukidnon; and Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) in Davao del Norte.

Coastal roads leading to nature and marine reserves in Pasacao-Balatan in Camarines Sur; Gilutongan and Nalusuan Marine Sanctuary in Cebu; and Canopy Forest in Eastern Samar are also in the priority projects under TRIP.

In 2012, the DPWH and the DoT signed an agreement to boost tourism infrastructure in priority destinations. For the last five years, the convergence program has completed over 1,500 tourism roads nationwide. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo

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