MANILA, Philippines - The contractor of the proposed P52-billion elevated highway that would connect the cities of Manila and Taguig assures the government that there would be no major traffic disruption during the construction of the project.
Armando Khong Hun, president of AKH General Contractor Inc., said the construction work would be confined near the Pasig, San Juan and Marikina Rivers but assured the navigation along the rivers would not be disturbed.
The so-called “Integrated Viaduct and Personal Rapid Transit System (IVPRT)” will be 21.74 kilometers long with four lanes.
The company has submitted its unsolicited proposal to the Departments of Transportation and Public Works and Highways in line with President Duterte’s objective to solve the worsening traffic situation in major thoroughfares in the metropolis.
Under the first phase of its proposal, the build-operate-transfer (BOT) project will involve the construction of four lane viaducts above Pasig River.
This will be from Delpan Bridge in Manila through Bonifacio Drive along Roxas Boulevard to Napindan Bridge in Taguig where it will intersect Metro Manila Circumferential 6.
Phase two of the project will have an elevated highway over the San Juan and Marikina Rivers, while phase three of the project will be the incorporation of a Personal Rapid Transit System (PRTS) with fully computerized operations which would have 10 stations.
In his presentation to Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Hun said the proposed project would reduce vehicular traffic along EDSA by 23.13 percent.
Navigation along the rivers would not be disturbed since the stretch of Pasig River is 90 meters wide and they would just need 20 meters when the construction commences, Hun said.
Hun also informed Public Works Secretary Mark Villar that there would be no right-of-way needed to be acquired by the government except on-off ramp approaches.
The proposed project, he said, would be located on top of Pasig, San Juan and Marikina rivers, which would have less acquisition.
“This will surely speed up the construction of the project,” Hun said.
In all, Hun said the Pasig River viaduct proposal could be developed within three months, while the entire project is completed in 42 months with no cost from the government.
AKH is the same construction company behind the bridge above the Paranaque River as part of the newly-opened NAIA Expressway project.
The Duterte administration, unlike the previous administration of President Benigno Aquino III said it is open to unsolicited proposals from the private sector as it vowed to usher in the so-called golden age of infrastructure.