[ mb.com.ph ]
Public Works Secretary Mark Villar announced that key reforms done to improve right-of-way (ROW) processes have now borne fruit.
“Since the issuance of Department Order No. 65, which created a ROW
Task force (RTF) for each of the projects being implemented, with the
Director of the Public-Private Partnership Service, concerned Regional
Directors as well as Unified Project Management Office (UPMO) Project
Directors as heads, significant progress in ROW acquisition of certain
big ticket projects included in the ‘Build, Build, Build’ Program can be
seen,” Villar noted.
Public Works Secretary Mark Villar
“The delegation of duties and responsibilities to the different RTFs
technically decentralized the ROW acquisition process. The
decentralization of ROW functions was done with the end in mind of
expediting the whole ROW acquisition process,” he added.
NLEX Harbor Link Project open this month
Villar noted that since the issuance of DO 65 last May, DPWH has
acquired 100% possession of site of the NLEX Harbor Link Project Segment
10 as of December 2018, after a year and seven months.
“We are happy to announce that the NLEX Harbor Link Project
will be accessible to the public by January. When this is completed,
travel time from C3 in Caloocan and NLEX, will be reduced to 10 mins,”
Villar noted.
NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is composed of the 5.65-km elevated
expressway traversing the NLEX from MacArthur Highway Karuhatan,
Valenzuela City, passing through Malabon City and C3 Road, Caloocan
City, and the 2.6-km section between C3 Road, Caloocan City and R10,
Navotas City.
“The next phase will connect it to R-10 and reduce travel time from
Port Area in Manila to Quezon City to approximately 10 minutes,” Villar
noted.
1980 project now at 87.8% completion
The DPWH is currently undertaking the finishing works in concreting
the additional 600-meter segment which would make 2.7-kilometers of
Mindanao Avenue Extension accessible within the first quarter of 2019.
“The project was started in the 1980s but was stopped for decades due
to right-of-way issues. We are happy that it was during the term of
President Duterte that we are able to deliver this project,” he added.
“The P118-million project which is now 87.78 percent also involves
construction of drainage and slope protection, reinforced concrete box
culvert, and street lighting,” Villar noted.
Resumed in 2017, the construction added a 700-meter road section from
P. dela Cruz Street to MGM Road which was completed in June 2018,
making 2.1-kilometers accessible by the public.
“Upon completion of the additional 600-meter segment, DPWH will be
working on right-of-way issues along the missing 500-meter gap which
will soon complete the full 3.2-kilometer stretch of the Mindanao Avenue
Extension,” Villar noted.
“The completion of the 8-lane Mindanao Avenue Extension is our
utmost priority as it will greatly reduce travel time by linking North
Caloocan to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and Quezon City and
improve traffic flow in the cities of Novaliches, Valenzuela and
Caloocan City,” said Villar.
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