THE tunnel boring activity of the Davao City bypass tunnel construction project started on Thursday, May 12.
In a statement posted by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the development of the construction projects progressed with the initial excavation done on the north portal and the south portal's northbound direction, since the bypass is a two-tube mountain tunnel. This is the first long-distance mountain tunnel in the country.
The excavation uses specialized equipment such as a drill jumbo, concrete spraying machine, and articulated dump hauler.
"Designed to have better seismic resiliency by Japanese experts, the tunnel construction activities at the south portal - southbound and northbound directions were earlier started in November 2021 and March 2022, respectively," DPWH's statement read.
According to DPWH, the bypass tunnel stretching 2,3 kilometers will cut travel time between Barangay Toril, Davao City and Barangay JP Laurel, Panabo City from almost two hours to 49 minutes to reduce traffic congestion in Davao City.
The ongoing project under Contract Package 1-1 has a budget of P13.23 billion financed under the Special Terms for Economic Partnership Loan between the Philippines and the Japan International Cooperation Agency.
The initial contract also includes the construction of a 7.9 kilometer four-lane road, three pairs of bridges with a total length of 500 meters, two underpasses, two overpasses, and four at-grade intersections.
The bypass tunnel construction project is part of the Duterte administration's Build, Build, Build Program that focuses on big-ticket infrastructure projects, including the Mindanao Railway Project.
Undersecretary and chief implementer of the Build, Build, Build Program Emil Sadain said DPWH will continue construction of the flagship infra projects as the country transitions to a new administration. (ICM)
