ILOILO City – South Korean consultants recently visited Panay Island, including Negros Occidental, as part of the process to determine the most suitable detailed engineering design (DED) for the construction of the Panay-Guimaras-Negros Occidental Bridges.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 6 acting director, Engr. Sanny Boy Oropel, confirmed that consultants from Yooshin Engineering Company and Dasan Consultants of South Korea presented a timeline for the DED in late January and personally assessed the distances between Panay, Guimaras, and Negros Occidental.
This visit followed the commencement of the DED work in December 2023 after the DPWH and the consultants signed a contract agreement for the DED of the bridge project.
On Dec. 20, 2023, DPWH secretary Manuel M. Bonoan approved the consultancy services contract for the project, a major step forward in realizing this key infrastructure flagship project in Western Visayas.
The consultants have committed to completing the DED for the Panay-Guimaras segment by December 2024, marking a significant phase in the two-year study from December 2023 to December 2025.
The procurement for all civil works is expected to begin in the first semester of 2025, following the completion of the study for the Panay-Guimaras Segment.
The project’s scope includes the construction of a 32.47-kilometer two sea-crossing bridges, connecting roads, and interchanges, linking Panay Island to Guimaras Island and Guimaras Island to Negros Island, covering a total length of 32.47 kilometers.
Section A or the Panay-Guimaras Segment of the bridge project has a total length of 13.004 kilometers.
Section B or Guimaras-Negros Segment has a total length of 19.47 kilometers.
Section A begins in the municipality of Leganes, Iloilo and ends in the municipality of Buenavista, Guimaras.
Section B is from the municipality of San Lorenzo, Guimaras and ends in the municipality of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental.
The project, costing an indicative P187.54 billion, aims to significantly reduce travel time between the islands from three to four hours to less than one hour, thereby realizing the Philippine National Development Strategy by promoting safer, faster, and more convenient transportation.
DPWH-6 serves as the coordinating body for the Unified Project Management Office, supervising the construction of the project, which is expected to have a tremendous economic impact on both provinces, particularly in terms of goods transportation from Mindanao and Manila./PN
