on Thu, 04/20/2017

A team from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has arrived in Negros Occidental to conduct a feasibility study for the proposed 35.85-kilometer coastal road in the northern part of the province.

This was announced yesterday by Bacolod City Lone District Representative Greg Gasataya, who proposed the coastal road development with Third District Representative Alfredo Benitez.

He said the DPWH team would inspect the sites in the cities of Bacolod, Talisay, Silay, and Victorias and E.B Magalona town which would be traversed by the coastal road.

Both Gasataya and Benitez had earlier filed House Bill 5237 seeking the construction of a coastal road along the said cities and municipality.

Talisay, Silay, Victorias and E.B. are under the congressional jurisdiction of Benitez.

The coastal road intends to facilitate the efficient flow of people and goods in the area, catalyze economic development, and generate employment opportunities and new sources of income for the local population.

In Bacolod, the construction of initial portion of the New Bacolod Economic Highway (BEH) road project is ongoing after DPWH Secretary Mark Villar led the groundbreaking rites in February.

The development includes the construction of the Section 2 of the BEH road project amounting to PHP300 million. The awarded contract amount for civil works is PHP164.799 million.

Spanning three kilometers from Barangay Sum-ag to Barangay Cabug, the road project is part of the 24-kilometer BEH worth PHP4.8-billion.

Gasataya had earlier said the PHP300 million project amount will be used for payments to the affected landowners and for civil works.

The 24-kilometer BEH will cover areas across Barangays Sum-ag, Cabug, Felisa, Handumanan, Mansilingan, Estefania, Granada, Mandalagan, and Bata.*(PNA)