The Mambaling underpass will be opened this Saturday, June 15, 2019. CDN Digital photo | Rosalie Abatayo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Motorists plying the southern route of Cebu City can breathe a sigh relief as the P638-million underpass project in Barangay Mambaling is set to open on Saturday, June 15, 2019.
Officials from the Cebu City Transportation Office (CCTO) and the Maintenance Division of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) have conducted the final inspection on the underpass on Thursday morning, June 13, to ensure its readiness for its formal opening.
Engineer Faustino “Jun” dela Cruz, chief of the DPWH-7 Maintenance Division, said the underpass is ready for the scheduled formal opening.
“We are to check further kung ma-clear na siya. Okay siya, passable. Most likely, ready na siya, finishing touches na lang ug clearing and pwede na gyud ma-open by June 15,” Dela Cruz said.
(We are to check further if it can be cleared. It’s okay, It’s passable. Mots likely, it’s ready. Only some finishing touches and clearing left to do and it can be open by June 15.)
The underpass will be formally opened at 10 a.m. on Saturday,
“I need to coordinate with our construction division to discuss further [if there are things needed to be done]. We checked on the access, clearing, additional [measures] that perhaps project engineers didn’t see, especially in traffic engineering. But technically, it’s okay [to be opened],” Dela Cruz added.
According to CCTO Chief Francisco Ouano, both private and public utility vehicles will be allowed to pass through the underpass.
But jeepneys have the discretion to use the side lanes of the 700-meter underpass for them to be able to load passengers.
“Private or public utility pero atong gihatagan og higayon ang mga [jeepney] kay magkuha man sila og pasahero nga adto sila sa babaw paagion. Pero kung puno sila pwede pod nga anhi sila moagi,” said Ouano.
(Either private or public utility vehicles may pass through the underpass, but since jeepneys may want to load passengers, they can opt to pass through the lanes at the surface. If all their seats are occupied, they may still pass through the underpass.)
Buses not allowed
Ouano, however, explained that they cannot still allow buses from the Cebu South Bus Terminal (CSBT) to pass through the N. Bacalso Avenue.
He explained that the volume of buses, if mixed with the regular vehicles passing through the road, will cause more traffic congestion.
Before the start of the construction of the underpass, CSBT buses were allowed to pass through N. Bacalso Avenue in Cebu City en route to their destinations in south Cebu.
At present buses from the CSBT make a right turn to the Mambaling Access Road going to the Cebu South Coastal Road (CSCR) to reach Talisay City and then back to the highway in Lawaan, Talisay City Cebu.
The civil works for the underpass, which was composed of six phases, started in August 2017.
DPWH promised to finish the project by March 2019 but heavy downpour in December 2018 caused the ground to be unworkable and prolonged the civil works, thus moving the opening to a later schedule. /bmjo
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