THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and a representative from the Chinese government signed an agreement for a feasibility study on the proposed Davao City Expressway Project.

DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar and Chinese Economic and Commercial Counsellor Jin Yuan on Tuesday signed the minutes of discussion for the grant deal.

“We are happy to announce that we received another grant from the People’s Republic of China, this time to push through with the feasibility study of the 23.3-kilometer Davao City Expressway Project. The DPWH and Chinese Project Team will be working together for the prompt realization of a comprehensive feasibility study so that we may soon reap the thousand-fold socioeconomic benefits of this expressway,” Mr. Villar said during the signing Tuesday.

The grant will cover socioeconomic and economic analysis; an environmental impact assessment; a social impact assessment; an engineering geological survey; a topographical survey; an evaluation of the project site’s seismic safety; a hydrological analysis; and a feasibility evaluation of the proposed expressway.

When completed, the P24.5-billion expressway is expected to decongest traffic in Davao City and ease access to Sta. Ana Port and other suburban areas. It will be designed to complement on-going and proposed projects for further enhancement of access to the city and its surrounding areas to encourage an increase in economic activity and productivity.

Under the initial plan of DPWH, the Davao City Expressway will be implemented in three phases.

Phase 1, which is expected to cost P12 billion, is an elevated 8.45 km viaduct starting at the intersection of Leon Garcia St. and Monteverde St. leading to Sta. Ana Port.

The second phase (P10 billion) is an 8.35 km elevated viaduct starting at the intersection of Daang Maharlika and Davao City Diversion Road in barangay Panacan, traversing the Davao City Diversion Road and ending at the Davao River Bridge in barangay Ma-a.

Meanwhile, Phase 3 (P2.5 billion) will be a new road mostly parallel to the existing diversion road, running west and then southwest until the Davao City Diversion Road near Catalunan Grande Road.

In June, DPWH and the Chinese Embassy signed the minutes of discussion for a full grant to finance the construction of Binondo-Intramuros Bridge in Manila and the Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge between Makati and Mandaluyong. — Patrizia Paola C. Marcelo

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