The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has targeted to open the initial 10.7 kilometer central portion of the 45.5 kilometer Davao City Bypass Construction Project by 2024 as it accelerates excavation works in the twin-tube road mountain tunnel.
DPWH Senior Undersecretary Emil K. Sadain said excavation works for the 2.3-kilometer, which will soon be first-ever long-distance mountain tunnel in the Philippines, will be completed by Dec. 2023.
The Davao City tunnel, with a north portal in Barangay Waan and south portal at the other end in Barangay Matina Biao, is a major component of the 10.7-kilometer contract package 1-1.
DPWH Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan said that the joint venture contractor Shimizu-Ulticon-Takenaka have so far excavated, sprayed concrete or “shotcrete” and installed steel ribs support reinforcement and rock bolts on the tunnel distance of 332 meters on northbound and 247 meters on southbound for south portal while progress for north portal is at 292 meters on southbound and 232 meters on northbound directions.
“We are fast-tracking the simultaneous construction of the road mountain tunnel in four areas of its north and south portals”, Sadain added.
The tunnel construction works for the Davao City Bypass Construction Project started at the north portal on Nov. 19 last year for southbound direction and on Dec. 10, 2021 for the northbound direction.
The excavation activities from the opposite end at the south portal commenced on May 12, 2022 for northbound direction and on June 9, 2022 for southbound direction.
After the activities at the north portal was temporarily halted by water seepage on the tunnel roof, the use of Japanese waterproofing technology and materials aided the DPWH and its contractor to address the problem.
Other than the tunnel, contract package 1-1 involves the construction of a 7.9 kilometer four-lane road, three pairs of bridges with a total length of 500 meters including the Davao River Bridge, two underpasses and two overpasses, 12 waterways culverts and four at-grade intersections.
This P13.23 billion on-going contract package 1-1 is financed by the Special Terms for Economic Partnership (STEP) Loan between the Philippines and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under loan agreement numbers PH-P261 and PH-P273.
The Davao City ByPass Road Construction Project is being implemented by DPWH Unified Project Management Office-Roads Management Cluster 1 (Bilateral) headed by Project Director Benjamin A. Bautista and under the on-site supervision and monitoring by Project Manager Joselito B. Reyes and Project Engr. Juan M. Diña Jr. with Nippon Koei – Katahira - Nippon Engineering-Philkoei as engineering consultants.
When completed, the entire bypass road will slash travel time between Toril, Davao City and the northern Panabo City, Davao Del Norte to under 49 minutes from the usual more or less two hours via Maharlika Highway. (Chito A. Chavez)