HEAVY vehicles are now prohibited from using the MacArthur Highway in Apalit town to give way for rehabilitation activities.
The local government of Apalit ordered the banning of heavy vehicles to prevent further deterioration of the major thoroughfare pending its reconstruction.
The stretch of MacArthur Highway from the City of San Fernando up to this town has long been a subject of complaint from motorists due to heavy dilapidation caused by influx of heavy vehicles bearing loads exceeding their allowed capacities.
Mayor Peter Nucom, together with Mayor-elect Oscar “Jun” Tetangco Jr., has formally requested through a letter to Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar the immediate rehabilitation of the said major thoroughfare to ease the daily travel of hundreds of motorists traversing it on a daily basis.
“The vehicular traffic in the locality has worsened and has affected the local economy. The number of vehicular accidents in the heavy deteriorated areas has soared into an alarming state,” Nucom lamented.
Moreover, the local government is also eyeing the strict implementation of the anti-overloading law through the use of weighing scales to ensure that vehicles with allowed capacities can use the thoroughfare, preventing its deterioration.
“We feel the need to strictly implement the law against overloading to regulate the influx of trucks bearing load exceeding the vehicle capacity in our area that cause further dilapidation of the already deteriorated road,” Nucom added.
Ongoing rehabilitation
Meanwhile, DPWH 1st District Engineering Office head Almer Miranda disclosed that rehabilitation activities, particularly asphalt overlaying in the affected section, as temporary solutions.
For the long-term solution, Miranda noted that DPWH is set to upgrade and concretize the stretch of MacArthur Highway to strengthen and also address the flooding in some low-lying areas.
“We will be conducting major construction activities at the CDCP junction in San Simon to address the regular flooding and the dilapidated stage of the area, especially that it serves as a major access road for motorists coming from different parts of the province and the region as a whole,” Miranda said.
Miranda assured affected motorists that the rehabilitation activities will be implemented and finished before the year ends.