DPWH, JICA begin preparatory survey of proposed 2nd San Juanico Bridge

Last year, the DPWH proposed building a second San Juanico Bridge that will complement the original one that was first opened back in 1973.

With more and more motorists using the San Juanico Bridge combined with the fact that the infrastructure is already aging, the proposed second bridge will serve to alleviate traffic volume from the original bridge. Unfortunately, the proposed bridge project will cost a whopping PHP 9.17 billion.

Fast forward one year later, officials from the DPWH and a team of global engineering experts from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) met recently to discuss the overview and critical issues of the proposed second San Juanico Bridge which is now under preparatory survey.

During the meeting, issues that were discussed included coverage of the Feasibility Study which will be conducted by the JICA Study Team in coordination with the DPWH UPMO BMC and Regional Office

Also discussed were the route selection, the number of lanes, traffic operation options for the second San Juanico Bridge, and the rehabilitation of the original bridge. Concerns on the environmental coverage of the study were discussed as well, including the future operation and maintenance of the second bridge.

The JICA Study Team for the second San Juanico Bridge project began their first of four on-site visits to the bridge route options last November 17, 2023. The second, third, and final on-site studies are slated to take place in February-March 2024, July 2024, and September 2024 respectively, with the final Feasibility Study Report targeted to be completed and submitted by early December 2024.

The second San Juanico Bridge project is aimed to provide an alternative link between Samar and Leyte while also decongesting the original bridge. In addition, it's among the priority flagship projects of President Ferdinand “Bong-Bong” Marcos Jr.'s administration.