A P2.4-billion mega bridge that will connect the towns of Aparri and Camalaniugan in Cagayan Province is now starting to materialize as the Department of Public Works and Highwhays (DPWH) held its groundbreaking ceremony Friday, June 25.
The implementation of the Camalaniugan Bridge is currently under detailed engineering design stage and build contract, DPWH Secretary Mark Villar said.
"We are starting to build this bridge and its going to spur socio-economic development and increase productivity of our people in Aparri, Camalaniugan, and Ballesteros in the Province of Cagayan," Villar added.
The bridge will provide a new connectivity between eastern to western Cagayan and will benefit about 6,000 daily travelers.
It will be constructed across Cagayan River with a total length of 1.580 kilometer, with scheduled completion in 2023.
Once it is done, it will reduce the travel time between Camalaniugan and Aparri to Ballesteros from an hour and 30 minutes to only 30 to 45 minutes.
The bridge project that will be linked Jct. Cagayan Valley Road is seen to be a crucial infrastructure as it will provide an alternate route to Magapit Suspension Bridge in Lallo, Cagayan, which at present is the only bridge that crosses Cagayan River in the northernmost part of the province towards Ilocos and Cordillera Regions.
Meanwhile, Villar together with Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Roy Cimatu, also inspected the ongoing Cagayan River rehabilitation and dredging project in Barangay Bangag, Lallo.
The Cagayan River Restoration program aims to prevent recurrence of massive flooding experienced last year in Cagayan Valley Region brought by heavy rains and typhoons.
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by Villar, Cimatu, DPWH Senior Undersecretary Rafael C. Yabut and Assistant Secretary S. Wilfredo Mallari of DPWH Regional Operations in Luzon, Region 2 Director Loreta M. Malaluan, and other public works and local government officials of Cagayan Province.