THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) 7 has decided to hold off its preventive maintenance work on the northbound lane of the Mananga Bridge in Barangay Tabunok, Talisay City after local officials told the agency to prepare a traffic management plan before it proceeds with the project.
Officials from DPWH and its contractor, Zion Construction, met with officials from Talisay City and Cebu Province regarding the sudden closure of the bridge’s northbound lane earlier this week.
Jonathan Tumulak, Cebu Provincial Traffic Management focal person, said the DPWH and the contractor admitted failing to prepare a traffic management plan that would have provided rerouting schemes, among others, while work was in progress.
Tumulak said the DPWH and the contractor will suspend work for at least 15 days to prepare the traffic management plan and to put up signs in the area to inform the public of the project and its effect on motorists.
While the bridge’s northbound lane is once again open to traffic, Tumulak said only light vehicles can use it due to the bridge’s condition. Heavy vehicles, such as trucks with six wheels and up, are urged to use the south coastal road at the South Road Properties, Tumulak added.
Joselito Sayson, DPWH 7 Construction Division head, initially told SunStar Cebu the bridge’s northbound lane of the bridge needed immediate repairs as parts of it are starting to sag.
Phases 5, 6
The P44-million project was supposed to start last year yet, but it was delayed due to the presence of informal settlers living under the bridge.
In a related development, buses and trucks will not be allowed to temporarily access side roads on both lanes of the underpass project on N. Bacalso Ave. when it opens to vehicular traffic on Nov. 24.
Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) Operations Chief Francisco Ouano said heavy vehicles will have to use the south coastal road.
Ouano said public utility jeepneys (PUJs) will have priority access to the side roads along with private vehicles.
He said there is still ongoing civil work in the area that is why buses and trucks are still banned from passing N. Bacalso Ave.
“We have to give priority to PUJs because that is part of their regular route even before the project. The alternate routes will also be open,” he said.
The opening of the side roads is expected to help ease the traffic condition in the south.
The underpass project, which started in August 2017, is now 81 percent complete.
The contractor recently finished implementing phase 4, which included boring, concreting and building of retaining walls.
It is now working on phases 5 and 6, which will cover the excavation, drainage lines, boring and concreting of the underpass’ lanes on both sides.
Meanwhile, Ouano said traffic on the Mambaling Access Road is still heavy, particularly during peak hours.
The DPWH 7 is implementing a road-concreting project in the area, which is expected to be completed next month.