Neda: Duterte admin pushing BGC-Ortigas bridge project

THE proposed route of the bridge as presented by the DPWH in 2014. INQUIRER INFOGRAPHICS

THE CONSTRUCTION of a bridge that will link Bonifacio Global City to the Ortigas business district is one of the urgent measures to be undertaken by the Duterte administration to ease deteriorating traffic conditions in Metro Manila, according to Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia.

The bridge, which would cross Pasig River from Makati to Pasig, is among the measures that the infrastructure committee of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) had recommended to address the perennial gridlock problem, especially along Edsa.

The Bonifacio Global City-Ortigas Link Bridge is expected to absorb 25 percent of Edsa’s daily traffic volume, Pernia said in a press briefing in Malacanang on Tuesday.

He said the project needs to be undertaken as soon as possible because Guadalupe Bridge, also on Edsa, would have to undergo retrofitting and this upgrade would leave only one lane of the bridge open to traffic.

In 2014, however, residents in Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City, aired their opposition to the BGC-Ortigas bridge project, saying it would only worsen traffic and pose security concerns for some 15,000 residents.

The protests were then led by village officials, who noted that the project was first conceived during the term of then Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chair Bayani Fernando. It was later shelved but revived in December 2013, they said.

As presented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) at the time, Phase 1 of the project envisions a bridge from Sta. Monica Street in Kapitolyo in Pasig City to Lawton Avenue, Makati. Phase 2 will run from Lawton to the BGC viaduct, then from Shaw Boulevard to the Sta. Monica viaduct.

In a public consultation held in August 2014 between DPWH officials and Kapitolyo residents, another route was suggested for the bridge: Instead of passing through Kapitolyo from Barangay Pineda, the bridge will be diverted to Pasig Boulevard.

Pernia on Tuesday also said Neda is pushing for the early resolution of the issue regarding the location of the common station for the MRT 3, LRT 1 and MRT 7.

The DPWH is set to present the final configuration of the station to the Department of Transportation, he added. –Leila B. Salaverria