THE 21st Davao City Council approved on Tuesday afternoon, July 15, 2025, the ordinance for the temporary road closure of the Bolton Bridge I (Southbound direction) for vehicular traffic for 10 days on suspended rules at the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
The closure will start from 10 p.m. of July 18 to 12 midnight of July 27 to make way for the repairs of the expansion joints.
The temporary closure is in line with the request of Agong Builders and Construction Supplies Inc. to give way for their roadworks on the bridge.
During the session, Lawyer Edward Perez, acting officer in charge of the City Transport and Traffic Management Office (CTTMO), said that they can no longer opt for an overnight closure since they cannot achieve the final curing.
He said that some of the mitigating measures that they would employ are rerouting trucks going south and installing traffic advisories for the rerouting of heavy trucks.
"Agdao pa lang daan palikuon na nato para dili sila matapok sa Bridge II and we would also deploy personnel and at the same time marshal for the contractor side in order to provide safety (We should make them turn as early as when they’re still in Agdao so they won’t gather at Bridge II, and we will also deploy personnel and marshals on the contractor's side to ensure safety)," he said.
Councilor Diosdado Mahipus suggested that zipper lanes be implemented in the underutilized lane of the Bolton Bridge I during the closure to prevent congestion in the area, considering that the area would become a traffic bottleneck.
Meanwhile, Councilor Danilo Dayanghirang suggested that the closure could wait until the Bucana Bridge finishes its construction, considering that it is almost done.
However, Perez replied that the DPWH and its contractor had already informed him that the closure must be done as soon as possible since the bridge is sustaining more damage.
In their traffic advisory, CTTMO announced that heavy trucks coming from the north are prohibited from passing through the Bolton Bridge II and are advised to use Quirino Avenue and other designated alternative routes.
The office said that all vehicles going to the South, except heavy trucks, will use Bolton Bridge II (Northbound-innerlane). Heavy trucks from Quezon Boulevard may use San Pedro Street, E. Quirino Avenue, or McArthur Highway, G. Torres Street (Sandawa), or Quimpo Boulevard.
On April 4, the Bolton Bridge 1 was temporarily closed for repairs and rehabilitation. The closure was implemented from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily, with the bridge reopening for traffic from 5:01 a.m. to 9:59 p.m.
CTTMO said that they can no longer implement a temporary closure, such as that done in April, since they need to work on the expansion joints of the bridge after it was affected by a fire and an earthquake.
He said that there is a need to implement a full road closure since they want the cement for the bridge to be completely dry before vehicles use it. RGP