Thursday, February 21, 2008 McArthur Highway rehab underway: lawmaker
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO -- About P10 million in fresh allocation will be initially poured in for the rehabilitation of the truck-battered McArthur Highway, Pampanga third district Representative Aurelio Gonzales Jr. said.
Gonzales said the National Government has vowed to release the initial P10 million to jumpstart the rehabilitation of the highway, which connects this city to Angeles City and the Clark Freeport Zone in the North.
However, he explained that the P10-million allocation would still be small compared to the total P71 million needed to fully improve the highway, which also serves as the main access towards the Regional Government Center (RGC) in Barangay Maimpis here.
He said the P10 million would be chipped from the 2008 General Appropriations Act (GAA), which was already submitted for signing to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
He added that his over-all plan for McArthur Highway includes the provision of line canals just outside the lane where hundreds of acacia trees are lined up.
With the improvement, a bicycle lane would also be provided on the outer lane of the highway.
Gonzales said the National Government is also keen on releasing additional funds for the rehabilitation of the whole stretch of McArthur Highway.
The lawmaker said a dialogue between the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is taking place for the removal of the acacia trees along McArthur Highway.
The trees, which have grown on both sides of the highway for decades, have been reportedly the cause of major vehicular accidents at the busy road.
DPWH Regional Director Alfredo Tolentino earlier said they are willing to plant more trees to replace the acacia trees but in another venue so as not to pose future problems to motorists.
While the budget for the rehabilitation has yet to be disbursed, the DPWH 1st Pampanga Engineering District under Enrico Guilas and Maintenance Chief Rosbe Dizon has painstakingly conducted minor repairs on the road, which requires frequent mending due to damages caused by overloaded quarry trucks.
Guilas said their office is scavenging for funds to support the constant repairs on the highway since funds from the National Road Board are hardly enough to cover all fund requirements of roads all over the country. (ABL)
