THE Department of Public Works and Highways rejected the proposed alternate route vehicles can utilize to bypass the under construction bridge in Misamis Oriental.
DPWH-Northern Mindanao Information Officer Vinah Maghinay said UKC Builders proposed alternate route was thumbed down by DPWH engineers as this would not be passable to all types of vehicles.
“Naay mga proposals pero dili siya recommendable according sa amo mga engineers kay dili siya feasible ug di pud siya passable sa tanan klase sa sakyanan (There are proposals but they are not recommendable according to our engineers, if there are indeed areas, these are not passable to all kinds of vehicles),” Maghinay said.
Maghinay added by the time the alternative route is fixed, the Igpit bridge is already passable.
The Igpit bridge in Opol town, Misamis Oriental collapsed on March 7 due to water saturation caused by water pipe leakage and heavy rainfall which caused disturbance in the traffic flow around the area.
On March 9, the bridge was declared passable. However, a truck ban for heavy-loaded trucks is implemented in the bridge to prevent another collapse while the construction is ongoing.
The Igpit Bridge project in Opol town, Misamis Oriental is already 79 percent complete and will be finished this April barring untoward incidents, Maghinay quoted the contractor as saying.
The construction of the bridge is being done in a progressive approach, she said, since funding is released “phase by phase.”
“This is also to allow continuous flow of the traffic since there is no other route to be utilized to redirect the incoming and outgoing motoring public,” she said.
To date, Maghinay said, the existing two-lane bridge was demolished to widen and make into six lanes, while the bridge is elevated by about 3.50 meter from the existing grade line to ensure flood won't enter the bridge.
The Opol bridge, on the other hand, is 75 percent accomplished and is expected to be completed this May.
Concerned agencies, Maghinay said, are deploying additional men to augment the contractor’s workforce in regulating traffic flow approaching the site.
She said a 24/7 working schedule is being followed to assure round-the-clock monitoring and operation.
