Breakthrough has been achieved on the first long-distance mountain tunnel in the Philippines.
The Davao City Bypass Construction Project, being built by the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA), involves the construction of a 29.7km, four-lane road including bridges and two 2.3km tunnels. At the same time, the Philippine government is constructing the 15.8km portion of the bypass, giving a total length of 45.5km.
The ceremonial breakthrough of the northbound tunnel was held yesterday in Barangay Waan, Davao City after the completion of excavation from opposite ends using the New Austrian Tunnelling (NATM) method.
“Not only does this project build roads and tunnels, but it also develops capacity on tunnel operations and maintenance using Japanese experience and expertise,” said JICA chief representative Baba Takashi. “The optimal combination of hard and soft support is what I proudly call JICA’s value addition contributing to comprehensive development and to achieve safe, reliable and comfortable transport for a better tomorrow.”
According to Tom Traffic Index 2024, Davao City is the most congested metropolitan area in the Philippines. The Davao City Bypass will reduce journey times from Maharlika Highway’s Davao-Digos and Davao-Tagum sections from around 1 hour and 44 minutes, to 49 minutes.
