Bridge to connect Samar to Luzon construction will start early 2018

San Juanico Bridge project of President Marcos linking Samar and Leyte islands.

Ernesto Octaviano, chief of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) regional office project development investment programming and budgeting division said that: " [feasibility study] The study will be done by Chinese experts through funding grants from the Chinese government. After the approval of technical assistance, the study will run for six months and hopefully construction will start early next year."

Wow! Amazing if it will come into fruition and the Duterte administration will be fondly remembered for this.


In fact,  the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) came up with the project cost already as they seek endorsement of the mega project from the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) for the kick-off of a feasibility study for such.

The DPWH said government needs 92.23 billion pesos (almost US$950 million) to build a cable-stayed long span bridge that will link Samar Island to Luzon.

The Sorsogon-Samar project has a combined length of 25.4 kilometers. It consists of three long span bridges – Allen to San Antonio in Northern Samar (4.9 kilometers), San Antonio to Capul in Northern Samar (8.5 kilometers), and Capul, Northern Samar to Matnog, Sorsogon (12 kilometers).

The only problem I see is that the government has become over-ambitious and plans on also making two other mega bridge projects, one linking Leyte to Mindanao and one in Panay-Negros-Guimaras Link Bridge, which are estimated to cost hundreds of billions of pesos too.

I hope the government first prioritizes the Samar to Luzon bridge. One day at a time, not all at once, master of none.