Maharlika Highway reblocking to mitigate traffic before Holy Week exodus

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is working double time to complete reblocking works on the Maharlika Highway to mitigate anticipated traffic congestion during the Holy Week exodus.

At a news conference in Manila on Friday, DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon said that among the temporary short-term solutions the department will implement on the highway is the completion of pending road-reblocking.

“’Yung mga reblocking na tinatawag nila, notorious diyan, na minsan taon ang binibilang bago matapos ’yan at di naaayos nang tama. Minamadali natin na lahat ng current reblocking works… Kailangan matapos bago mag-Semana Santa. Two weeks away. ’Yan po ang pinipilit natin,” he added.

(The reblockings they are talking about are notorious there, and it sometimes takes years before completion, and is not done correctly. We are rushing all current reblocking works… We need to finish this before the Holy Week. [It is] two weeks away. That is what we are trying to do.)

He also said that they will be conducting road-patching on some affected areas of the highway.

“Mapatch lang ng konti para naman makabilis ng takbo yung sasakyan,” said Dizon.

(At least we can patch it a bit so the cars can speed up.)

“Kailangan ang goal natin together with DILG, PNP, DOTr, ang goal ay pagdating ng Semana Santa, walang obstruction sa Maharlika Highway para naman di natin maperwisyo ang mga biyahero natin,” he added.

(Our goal together with the DILG, PNP, and DOTr must be that when the Holy Week arrives, there are no obstructions along the Maharlika highway so that there will be no nuisances encountered by our travellers.)

In an inspection, DPWH shared that Maharlika Highway is currently operated on a stop-and-go traffic scheme due to ongoing road repairs.

Bumpy roads required vehicles to travel as slowly as 5 kilometers per hour.

Dizon revealed that 30% of the highway was damaged.

He said that Maharlika Highway needs a large-scale rehabilitation, which is why he is targeting to start a procurement and bidding process for rehabilitation after the Holy Week.

“Malakihang pag-aayos ang kailangan dito. Hindi natin magagawa in months. Alam niyo naman ang Maharlika Highway, mahigit isang milyon na kababayan ang nadaan diyan araw-araw. Yan ang ating backbone,” said Dizon.

(A large-scale rehabilitation is needed here. We cannot do it in months. As you all know, more than a million Filipinos pass through the Maharlika Highway every day. That is our backbone.) –NB, GMA Integrated News