WE were in downtown Davao City last Monday for an important meeting with some friends. We used the Calinan-New Valencia-New Carmen-Magtuod short-cut route hoping that we could save on fuel using that once a 25-minute travel from our rural residence.
The last time we used the same route was over a month ago since it is pretty much shorter if we use the Biao-Tacunan-Catalunan Grande route if our concerns in coming down to the city proper can be done even at our residence at the latter barangay.
We were dismayed seeing the situation of the New Valencia-New Carmen-Magtuod road which we believe could likely be the scene of serious vehicular accidents sooner or later if not attended to by the government promptly.
The fast subsidence of the base of the concreted road is now very evident. In some stretches of the road where both sides are deep embankments soil erosion is also fast showing. In fact some 300 meters away from the New Carmen Barangay Hall, it is not only cracks that are manifesting itself. The subsidence of the road base is quite deep already that smaller vehicles can be accommodated in whole if they miss to see the two large diffusions. Clearly, the condition of the road base subsidence is abated by the passage of large vehicles on the route.
Another delicate portion of the road is that between the New Carmen Elementary School and the Davao City’s Sanitary Landfill facility. The road is connected with a concrete bridge roughly 40 meters long. But some time ago, the concrete span showed several cracks indicating that its age and the constant use of the bridge by heavy vehicles including the city’s contracted garbage haulers are already catching up on the connector facility. However, the government through its appropriate agencies – the Department of Public Works and Highways, or the City Engineer’s Office – appeared to content doing some palliatives only. Instead of repairing or reinforcing the bridge, the concerned agencies merely overlaid the cracks with asphalt. Of course it was one good way to hide the bridge’s deteriorating condition from the public.
The same palliative strategy is also being applied on stretches of the same road where cracks are showing most evidently because of the erosion of the soil from the top of the embankments on both sides.
Unfortunately, either the DPWH or the CEO is not able to fast track the overlaying of asphalt as fast, or faster than the appearance of the cracks on the concreted road surface. Hence, the lurking danger brought about by the Magtuod-New Carmen-New Valencia road cannot anymore escape from the observant users of the mentioned supposedly easy shortcut road going to Calinan from the city proper or vice-versa.
We are certain that the road condition has already been reported by the Barangay captains of the villages that are being cut across by the route to the proper authorities. As to why there seems to be no concrete action being done on the matter we have no idea. We could hazard a guess but we would rather not to at this point in time..
Thus, we are strongly encouraging people from both the City Engineer’s Office or the DPWH District Office with jurisdiction over the areas concerned to immediately visit the road and see for themselves the sorry state of the so called relief route for those wanting to escape heavy traffic in regular road ways to and out of the city proper.
It is also our take that by inspecting the same road the DPWH or CEO executives may discover that the expansion project on the same road has remained unfinished way much later that the project’s supposed completion. In fact the project contractor is continuously doing repairs of some portions of their completed sites. Why, we could only assume that the earlier destruction on certain portions of the expanded and rehabilitated road is due mainly to the poor quality of work done on the project or the inappropriate materials used on the project.
Again, we are not saying that DPWH and CEO people will agree fully with our observations. But should they wait for a major road accident to happen in that stretch of roads connecting at least three villages before they act on the problem?
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And talking of roads and bridges we are extremely happy to note the fast work done by the contractor of Davao City’s By-Pass Road connecting the City from its north sector down to its southern side.
The by-pass road has a 2-way tunnel component that cuts across the underground of the hills between the Waan and Langub ends.
Late the other week we decided to come to the city’s downtown area using the Matina Pangi-Barangay Langub road. From a distance we saw the inviting tunnel entrances down under even as we marveled at the work on the road where the vehicles either get out of or get into it.
This early we could already imagine the change in the aura of that mountainous Barangay Langub, Waan and Tacunan when the by-pass road project will have been completed and operational.
We can see a lot of opportunities opening up for people in the areas.
