The newly installed Acting Secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) immediately made his presence felt on the ground, inspecting the on-going Binondo Intramuros Bridge Project.
Secretary Roger G. Mercado said that although reports can be read inside airconditioned office or while seated on vehicle, best decisions are made if you really get to know and feel the situation in the field.
DPWH Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain, in-charge of Unified Project Management Office (UPMO) Operations assisted Secretary Mercado in his first project visit as the newly installed DPWH Chief was also the first Cabinet official to step onto the completed deck slab of the two-way four-lane basket-handle tied steel arch main bridge.
Secretary Mercado says with pride that the team of Undersecretary Sadain has done an excellent job in coming with solutions to project implementation challenges as well as mitigated the impact of Covid-19 pandemic to construction activities.
DPWH-UPMO Roads Management Cluster 1 together with the contractor China Road and Bridge Corporation has already accomplished about 82.75 percent of work for the Binondo Intramuros Bridge Project.
We are almost there and the project is scheduled to be finished early next year, Secretary Mercado added.
Others who were present in the inspection are Undersecretary Eugenio R. Pipo Jr.; Assistant Secretary Ador G. Canlas; and the Project Directors of five (5) specialized UPMO clusters namely Benjamin A. Bautista of Roads Management Cluster 1, Sharif Madsmo Hasim of Roads Management Cluster 2, Rodrigo Delos Reyes of Bridges Management Cluster, Ramon A. Ariola III of Flood Management Cluster, and Johnson Domingo of Buildings Management Cluster.
According to Undersecretary Sadain, the ₱3.39-Billion bridge project across Pasig River is part of the two (2) bridges financed by a government aid grant from the People’s Republic of China. Another China-granted Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge linking Makati and Mandaluyong was earlier completed and inaugurated by President Duterte.
The new Binondo-Intramuros Bridge is a 680-meter, basket-handle tied steel arch bridge that will soon connect districts of Intramuros (at Solana Street and Riverside Drive) and Binondo (at San Fernando Bridge) in Manila with a viaduct structure over Estero de Binondo.
This new bridge under the Build, Build, Build program funded by Official Development Assistance is expected to not only cut travel time between Intramuros and Binondo but also benefit approximately 30,000 vehicles daily.