Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark A. Villar announced the expansion of the 2.22-kilometer portion of the 24.61-kilometer Arterial (Plaridel) Bypass Road Bulacan had been completed. Now, it has 4 lanes from the previous 2 lanes only.
The 2 added lanes of the Angat Bridge would help speed up the slow flow of traffic due to the increasing number of vehicles using this two-way two-lane bypass road that connects the North Luzon Expressway to Barangay Borol 2nd, Balagtas, and Daang Maharlika. Highway in Barangay Maasim, San Rafael. This will cut the average travel time of approximately 15,000 motorists per day between Borol 2nd, Balagtas, and Maasim, San Rafael, from 69 to 24 minutes.
According to the DPWH website, the Angat Bridge or Bridge No. 8, along the Plaridel Bypass Road, is considered one of the longest bridges in the Philippines at 1.12 kilometers. It is constructed over the mighty Angat River, considered the largest river system in the province. In fact, there are three major dams along the Angat watershed (Ipo, Bustos, and Angat Dam). Angat Dam generates hydroelectric power.
DPWH Secretary Mark A. Villar, together with the Unified Project Management Office (UPMO) and UPMO-Road Management Cluster 1 (RMC 1) representatives, conducted the final inspection of the newly completed section last April 21, 2021.
Build Build Build Project: Widening of Angat Bridge section of the Plaridel Bypass Road
The project is under the Arterial Road Bypass Project Phase 3 (ARBP-Phase 3). This involves the widening of the entire 24.61km stretch of the Plaridel Bypass Road from the Balagtas area of the North Luzon Expressway, all the way to San Rafael in Bulacan. It is among the game-changing infrastructure flagship projects of the government to reduce travel time.
According to Undersecretary Engr. Emil Kiram Sadain, Contract Package 3 (CP-3) of ARBP-Phase 3, costing ₱1.092 Billion, was funded from the derived project savings from Arterial (Plaridel) Bypass Road Phase 2 and financed by a loan agreement between the Government of the Philippines and the Government of Japan (GOJ) through Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under PH-P250 and a new loan agreement also with JICA under PH-P266.
According to DPWH, the contract package covers station 47+400 in Brgy. Bonga Menor, Bustos up to station 49+625 in Brgy. Tambubong, San Rafael and involves the construction of Bridge No. 8 or Angat Bridge made of pre-stressed concrete continuous box girder built thru balanced cantilever method; 1.063 km portland concrete cement pavement of seven (7) meters carriageway, 0.35 meter thick, and 2.50 meters shoulder for both sides; 40.86 meters Bridge No. 9 on pre-cast concrete piles foundation. In layman’s terms, the bridge follows international standards and is well-constructed.
Part of the project is constructing the underpass, drainage facilities, and slope protection structures; and provision of miscellaneous works such as installation of road signs, kilometers posts, guardrails, and pavement markings.
ARBP-Phase 3 involves widening from two (2)-lanes to four (4)-lanes of the entire 24.61 km bypass road from NLEX in Balagtas to San Rafael, Bulacan, to cope with the present traffic situation with about 15,000 vehicles diverted to the Plaridel Bypass, bypassing several towns of Bulacan and decongesting the traffic at Pan-Philippine Highway (PPH).
Read NLEX Tambobong Interchange Now Open: What are the NLEX Exits in Bulacan?
Sources
- DPWH completes a new four-lane bridge along Plaridel Bypass Road in Bulacan. https://www.topgear.com.ph. (n.d.). https://www.topgear.com.ph/news/motoring-news/dpwh-angat-river-bridge-bulacan-a4354-20210422.
- Navales, R. G. (2021, March 7). DPWH: Expansion of Plaridel bypass finished by March 31. Sunstar. https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/1888048/Pampanga/Local-News/DPWH-Expansion-of-Plaridel-bypass-finished-by-March-31.
- Department of Public Works and Highways . Facebook. (n.d.). https://www.facebook.com/dpwhph/.
- Sec. Mark Villar Works. Facebook. (n.d.). https://www.facebook.com/SecMarkVillarWorks.
- Mark Villar. Facebook. (n.d.). https://www.facebook.com/SecMarkVillar.
- Report, S. (2021, April 21). ‘Build build build’: DPWH completes 4-Lane Angat River Bridge in Bulacan. The Filipino Times. https://filipinotimes.net/latest-news/2021/04/21/build-build-build-dpwh-completes-4-lane-angat-river-bridge-in-bulacan/.
- DPWH to Complete Expansion Works for 2.22 KM Segment of Plaridel Bypass by March 31. DPWH to Complete Expansion Works for 2.22 KM Segment of Plaridel Bypass by March 31 | Department of Public Works and Highways. (2021, March 5). https://www.dpwh.gov.ph/dpwh/news/21671.