Construction of the P175 billion inter-island bridge connecting Cavite and Bataan will start in the first quarter of 2024, according to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
The 32 kilometer project is a cable-stayed bridge to be built over Manila Bay, to reduce the travel time between Bataan and Cavite from five hours to just 40 minutes, senior Undersecretary Emil Sadain said.
“This mammoth project is a priority project under the Marcos administration’s Build, Better, More (BBM) program that aims to boost the country’s economic growth through increased investments in public infrastructure.
“It is only under this administration that this project was finally realized,” he said.
The bridge will permanently connect the two provinces in Central Luzon and Southern Tagalog region, dramatically reducing the travel time and alleviating traffic congestion in Metro Manila.
Sadain said that they were looking to complete the detailed engineering design (DED) works for the project by the first quarter of 2023.
The design of the bridge has been drawn from the sea, surrounding mountains, and Manila’s skyline. The 32.15 km-long Bataan-Cavite bridge is being constructed with two lanes in each direction, connecting Bataan and Cavite provinces, located northwest and southwest of the capital Manila.
The bridge will start at Barangay Alas-asin in Mariveles, Bataan, crossing Manila Bay, and end at Barangay Timalan in Naic, Cavite.
The project will involve the construction of two cable-stayed navigation bridges, the North Channel Bridge with a main span of 400m and the South Channel Bridge with a 900m main span, standing at a water depth of approximately 50m. Land viaducts, marine viaducts, and ancillary buildings will also be constructed under the project.
“Marine geophysical surveys and geotechnical investigations in evaluating underground conditions and site characterization over the waters of Manila Bay are ongoing with an overall accomplishment at 55 percent to date,” he said.
Sadain said the geological aspects of the site have to be studied in detail given the nature of the project before the commencement of construction activities for said infrastructure flagship project, which was started by the past administration.
He added the project would be fast-tracked and would be completed under the Marcos government.
The Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge will introduce new expansion and economic growth opportunities outside of the metropolis with investors now setting up industries leading to the route of promising new land and marine viaduct highway to be built between Regions 3 (Central Luzon) and 4A (Calabarzon).
Implemented by DPWH Unified Project Management Office-Roads Management Cluster 2 (Multilateral), the project is being developed with funding from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) with the DED contract awarded to the joint venture of TY Lin International and the Republic of
Korea’s Pyunghwa Engineering Consultants, working with Switzerland-based Renardet and the Philippines’ DCCD Engineering Corp.