Time to rebuild the Pit-os Lusaran road  

There was a time when, for professional and business reasons, I frequented the western side of Cebu Island. I was in my first year of law practice, more than four decades ago, when the only link between Cebu City and Toledo City was through the dreaded Campo Siete. In my memory, there was a one-lane situation somewhere between Campo Cuatro and Campo Seis. The road, mainly chipped from the mountainside, was unpaved with this particular stretch being very muddy and slippery on rainy days although commuters on public transport had to squint their eyes to see through swirls of dust when it was sunny. The reputation that it was a dangerous road grew even more with the news of a bus plunging down a ravine hundreds of meters below.

The second Cebu-Toledo link was built in the early 1980’s when then Governor Eduardo Gullas opened the Naga-Uling road. It was awaited with high hopes by the governor’s constituents. Although longer than Manipis, the original asphalt coating on a comparably wider avenue made it a safer option for me and other travelers. As soon as it became passable, even barely, I drove through it. Because the road was constructed mostly in no-man’s land, I could only see few houses along the way.

The Trans Central Highway, cut from the mountainous virgin forest between Cebu City and Balamban, became the third road to link the east and the west sides of Cebu island. The late governor Lito Osmeña stunned all doubting Thomases when he strung mountains together to make this highway an engineering marvel. Believe me, in the early months of its use, the Trans Central Highway was a lonely road to drive through. There were only few houses so built far from one another that one could conclude the owners never imagined seeing cars soon in their vicinity.

Again for recent professional and business interests, few travels to Toledo City were a necessity. I could have really asked an errand boy to do the job. But, nostalgia and inquisitiveness made me take the trip just few weeks ago. Along the Manipis Road, I saw more than what I expected. The road was now a four-lane affair. In the Naga-Uling strip, modern traffic signages made the traffic less stressful. Yes, more structures dotted the roadsides. In areas that, not too long ago, were virgin forests of sort, I observed economic activities.

The stretch of the Trans Central Highway from Busay, Cebu City, to Gaas, Balamban, can arguably be considered as an economic miracle. Its growth began in the pandemic when the rest of the world teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Resorts have sprouted. These are built on seemingly unlikely areas using modern designs to adapt to the terrain. I found myself dropping in one shop looking for my usual cup of coffee. Its parking space can handle a big volume of vehicles. The spot I went in has facilities that can cater to the taste of discerning visitors. Of course, not far away, there are shops for bargain-hunting travellers.

I saw a responsible-looking someone on the next table. After he returned my smile, I asked him what probably made this area a hub of tremendous economic activity? He did not hesitate: “The road” was his answer.

Such a learning! A well-constructed highway leads to a motley of economic activities. At present, there is a road from Pit-os to Lusaran. It is narrow. Two vehicles coming from opposite directions have to slow down to avoid collision. Could our government leaders have forgotten it? I believe that if is rebuilt into a four-lane highway, it can match the frenetic economic activities now experienced in the Busay to Gaas road strip.