DPWH rushes new segment of Bukidnon-Davao road
VALENCIA CITY—The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is rushing the completion of a new segment of the Bukidnon-Davao (Buda) road after a six-lane section of this major highway collapsed on Oct. 18 due to a massive landslide, hampering the flow of vehicles between the Davao and Northern Mindanao regions.
According to Roshelle Novie Cabrido, DPWH Northern Mindanao information officer, work is ongoing for the 460-meter, four-lane road just above the collapsed section of the Buda highway at Sitio Kipolot in Barangay Palacapao in Quezon town.
The project costs P46.6 million, funded by the Quick Response Fund of the DPWH, Cabrido said. It is targeted to be opened by mid-January next year, with only minor activities left to finish.
She said their engineers were committed to fulfill the earlier instruction of Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon to have the Buda road reopened to traffic soon to stem the mounting economic losses from the disruption to transportation and logistics.
Losses
The Department of Economy, Planning and Development estimated the daily economic losses at P187 million, and P14.01 billion by the end of 2025, equivalent to some 1.1 percent of Northern Mindanao’s gross regional domestic product.
As of Dec. 15, the new road segment was 65 percent completed, with excavation works 80 percent done. Workers are finalizing the grade before placing the surface course, Cabrido said.
The project covers earthworks, slope protection and the development of base and surface courses. Concrete overlay can be included in the next phase of the project, Cabrido added.
The Buda road is the shortest route between Davao and Cagayan de Oro cities, the two major economic engines of Mindanao. With the road section’s collapse, large trucks are diverted either through the highway in Cotabato province or the mountain road between Bukidnon and Davao del Norte provinces, adding between 60 and 100 kilometers to the travel.
