Newly-installed chair of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Secretary Leo Tereseo Magno refuted a newspaper report (not on Edge Davao) that the 1.34-kilometer Bucana Bridge project will be delayed.
Magno instead affirmed that it is ahead of schedule.
Recent report from a media outlet in Davao City quoted an official from the Department of Public Works and Highways-Davao Region (DPWH-Davao) suggesting that the opening of the 1.34-kilometer Bucana Bridge would be delayed to 2026 from its original target of completion on November 2025.
“As the new Chair of the Mindanao Development Authority and the Presidential Assistant for Eastern Mindanao, I would like to clarify that this information is not accurate,” Magno said in a statement.
Magno added that DPWH Undersecretary Emil Sadain has personally informed him that the project is, in fact, ahead of schedule, and currently at 20% completion.
The Bucana Bridge project, which is part of the Davao River Bridge Project, has a target construction period of 18 months.
“Having commenced in the second quarter of 2024, the project is on track for completion by the end of 2025,” Magno said.
Furthermore, Magno said that the construction will proceed without interruption as the project is funded through a grant from China Eximbank.
DPWH 11 director Juby Cordon reported during the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas with DPWH 11 at the DPWH 11 Regional Office, Magsaysay Avenue, Davao City on Tuesday, that as of April 30, 2024, construction of the Bucana Bridge is at 15.694% complete.
With a total length of 1,340 meters, construction of the Bucana Bridge includes the construction of a four-lane six-span extradosed bridge and approach roads crossing the Davao River.
The project will complement the Davao City Coastal Bypass Road by serving as an alternate route to the existing urban road network of Davao City, which is presently experiencing vehicular traffic congestion as such and is expected to generate a large volume of diverted traffic.
