MRT-7 construction on North Avenue to only occupy two lanes —MMDA

The Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said construction of the foundations for the Metro Rail Transit-7 beginning Saturday will only occupy the two innermost lanes of the North Avenue in Quezon City.

"They promised us that if they're going to get one lane each sa innermost, 'yung three lanes and two lanes po each side, ipa-promise nila na hindi mababawasan," MMDA Assistant General Manager Jojo Garcia said at a press conference Friday.

Garcia said the North Avenue will not be totally closed off but if traffic builds up in the area, motorists bound for or coming from the Quezon City Memorial Circle can be rerouted.

"Yung sa Circle pwede pumunta Mindanao, punta sa Road 3 lalabas ng Visayas," Garcia said.

The MMDA assured there will be a coordination between the contractors and the agency to prevent causing a heavy traffic flow.

"So any movement diyan, nagkaroon kami ng pag-uusap, talagang kailangan ng close coordination with the MMDA... I think mas mapapaganda 'yung flow ng traffic diyan," Garcia added.

He also said the contractors will be penalized if they fail to inform the agency about changes in their operations.

"Hindi na sila puwede gumalaw ng walang pagpaalam sa MMDA. Any movement na hindi namin alam, may penalty," he said.

The MMDA said "major construction" will only take place in the area between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.

The contractor of the MRT-7 Hyundai Rotem-EEI consortium estimated that construction of the whole project, which has six phases, will finish in 2019.

"As with regards to the schedule, 'yung sisimulan kasi sa North Avenue tomorrow is 'yung foundation, that will take a month bago itayo 'yung poste. We can expect na 'yung construction along North Avenue tuloy tuloy na ito hanggang sa matapos sa 2019," an official said.

The consortium said the laying of the foundations will start from the Veterans Memorial Medical Center facing North Avenue to Agham Road, and will take about a month to finish.

"Du'n sa one month na 'yun, foundation lang siya, hindi pa siya 'yung buong structure. Wala pa 'yung column o poste, so that will be another schedule or timeline," the official further said. — MDM, GMA News

34 of 75 flagship infra projects to start in ’18

The government will break ground for 34 or almost half of the 75 “flagship” infrastructure projects under the Duterte administration’s ambitious “Build, Build, Build” program, state planning agency National Economic and Development Authority said yesterday.

In a forum, Neda Undersecretary Rolando G. Tungpalan said one project already broke ground before 2017, while 15 were rolled out last year.

Next year, 10 flagship projects will be launched, on top of four planned for rollout in 2020.

The groundbreaking schedules for 11 projects were yet to be determined.

As of Jan. 15, 66 of the 75 flagship projects were estimated to cost a total of P2.289 trillion, Tungpalan said.

Among the big-ticket projects to be rolled out this year are 12 bridges that will cross the Pasig River, Marikina River and the Manggahan Floodway.

The bridges to be constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways this year until 2022 will “improve road transport network capacity and efficiency in Metro Manila” and alleviate traffic congestion, he said.

The DPWH will also roll out the P4.86-billion Panguil Bay Bridge project that will connect Tangub City in Misamis Occidental and Tubod, Lanao del Norte, for completion in 2021.

The Department of Transportation, meanwhile, will implement the P35.26-billion, 102-kilometer Mindanao Rail Project (Phase 1) that will connect Tagum City, Davao City and Digos City in Region 11. It is eyed for completion by 2022.

The DOTr will also start this year work on the P211.43-billion Philippine National Railway North 2 Project, the 69.5-kilometer extension of the PNR North 1 from Malolos to Clark International Airport and the sprawling Clark Green City, eyed for completion in 2024.

Also for roll-out in 2018 is the DOTr’s P175.3-billion PNR South Long-Haul Project, a 639-km rail consisting of these lines: 406-kilometer Los Baños to Legazpi; 117-km Legazpi to Matnog; 58-km Calamba to Batangas; and 68.5-kilometer Tutuban to Los Baños.

Tungpalan said the PNR South Long-Haul railway would be financed by China.

Next year, the DOTr will begin implementation of the P355.59-billion Metro Manila Subway Project (Phase 1), a 25.3-km underground rail that will connect Quezon City and Taguig City, and extend to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

The subway, to be financed by Japan, would be completed by 2027, Tungpalan said.

Under “Build, Build, Build,” the government plans to roll out 75 flagship “game-changing” projects. The government intends to spend up to P9 trillion on hard and modern infrastructure until 2022 to usher in “the golden age of infrastructure” after years of neglect.