'Modern victory of engineering, construction':CCLEX opens today

CEBU, Philippines —  About five years since it broke ground, the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX), the third bridge that connects mainland Cebu to Mactan Island, opens afternoon today, April 27, 2022, with President Rodrigo Duterte returning to Cebu for the event.

The opening coincides with the 501st commemoration of the historic battle of Mactan, which marked the victory of the warriors of Mactan under chieftain Lapulapu over the Spanish armada led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan.

CCLEX is Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC)’s first toll road project outside Luzon.

At 8.9 kilometers, the end of the bridge in mainland Cebu lands at the South Road Properties in Cebu City while its other end in Mactan lands in the Municipality of Cordova.

Created to last a century, CCLEX has a design speed of 80 kilometers per hour (kph) and a navigational clearance or height of 51 meters to allow large vessels to pass underneath.

The structure is highlighted by iconic crosses on top of twin pylons,

“We are happy and honored to have come to this point, opening the biggest infrastructure project in this part of the country. We thank President Duterte for honoring us by being part of this historic event,” said Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC) Chairman Manuel Pangilinan in a statement.

“Today, we mark a different milestone, a modern victory not of arms but of engineering and construction that gave us such a beautiful structure that has now become an icon of Cebu,” Pangilinan said.

Since breaking ground in 2017, construction of the bridge continued even with some delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cebuano workers were pushed to the best of their abilities when some foreign consultants had a hard time traveling due to pandemic restrictions.

MPTC President and CEO Rodrigo Franco said their company is happy to complete the project and contribute to the economic development in southern Philippines.

CCLEX is seen as a symbol of strength and might of the Cebuanos who are able to weather the storm of the COVID-19 pandemic, and even the wrath of Typhoon Odette in December 2021.

“This means we are back! We are back!” said Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama.

Benefits

CCLEX is expected to have socio-economic impacts as it will reduce travel time, decongest traffic, increase economic activity, and provide a direct link to tourism in Cebu south.

“The impact on this is beyond approximation,” Rama said.

Some have expressed worry that the vehicle traffic will be heavier on both ends, in Cebu City and Cordova, but Rama said it will be a positive indication of economic movement.

“As to the traffic congestion, we will see… But no matter what, it is just a matter of traffic management,” he said.

Former secretary Mark Villar of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said CCLEX is expected to serve at least 50,000 vehicles daily.

“I have no doubt Cebuanos will find their travel even better, easier and they will enjoy being Cebuanos even more,” Villar said.

 Villar believes that with long-span bridges linking island cities and provinces, infrastructure investment is critical to economic development.

“The success of CCLEX will be reflected nationally, it will leave a legacy and a mark that connects and improves the lives of Filipino people,” he said.

Cordova Mayor Therese Sitoy-Cho, daughter of the town’s former mayor, the late Adelino Sitoy, who championed for the third bridge, said they have since been getting inquiries from investors of tourism, hospitality, commercial, residential, and even economic zones.

At the South Road Properties, more funds are expected to be poured in on top of existing developments.

“Surely, more need for water, power, telecoms, and companies running these industries and its related suppliers will have more business for them,” said Allan Alfon, president and general manager of CCLEX Corporation.

Game-Changer

Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) President, Charles Kenneth Co, also expects more economic activity in Cordova.

“We look forward to the opening of CCLEX to enable faster commute from Southern Cebu to Mactan. We expect more economic activity in Cordova because of CCLEX,” Yu said.

He hopes that DPWH will continue to develop new access to the airport from CCLEX to decongest the Mandaue-Mactan Bridge and the Marcelo Fernan Bridge.

Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) Immediate Past President Steven Yu believes CCLEX will be a game-changer.

“CCLEX as an inter-island bridge connecting two major islands which are centers of commerce and industry in the Philippines is a game-changer in spurring unquantifiable progress, development and upliftment to the lives of the ordinary Cebuanos,” Yu said.

Yu went on to say that CCLEX will lead to the rise of new and highly urbanized cities that will create massive amounts of employment opportunities and lowering costs of living in affected areas by improving access and efficiency.

He said CCLEX is a major milestone in the development of Cebu Island as a premier investment and tourism destination in Asia.

“The trickling down the economic impact of an inter-island bridge for Cebu and Mactan is so significant that it is worth every cent of the 30-Billion pesos costs to build it. It is literally cementing Cebu's status as Queen City of the South for the generations to come. Commerce, industry, and tourism will explode within the vicinity of this historic infrastructure,” Yu said.

Retail Sector

For the Philippine Retailers Association (Cebu Chapter), CCLEX is expected to lower logistical cost even with the toll fee.

CCLEX will use an all-electronic toll collection system.

“The opening up of CCLEX is a welcome development to the retail sector as this will lower the cost of logistics and increase the returns to the business, increase business efficiency by saving time in transporting goods from Cebu island to Cordova and Lapu-Lapu. The easy movement of goods will dramatically reduce the cost contributed to traffic and distance,” said PPRA-Cebu President Chester Lim.

Citing the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) studies in 2020, Lim said the Philippines loses 3.5 billion daily due to traffic congestion.

Lim also hopes for more infrastructure projects in Cebu and Central Visayas after a report by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) said that Region 7 ranks fourth as economic revenue contributor in the country but is only ranks 10th in the allocation of budget for infrastructure.

Sentiments

Former WBC-Asia Boxing Council Continental minimumweight titleholder, Rey Caitom, Jr., who has businesses and houses in both Cordova and Lapu-Lapu, is optimistic of the benefits of CCLEX.

“Yes, maka-open more businesses gyud ning CCLEX kay busy naman kaayo ang dalan once ma-open na… karun gani nga wala pa nag-open, busy na kaayo diri sa Cordova ang mga dalan… kailangan na gyud ni mapadak-an ang dalan diri sa Lapu-Lapu to Cordova kay ma-traffic na gyud ni ug maayo,” he said.

Sylvester Ramirez, one of Cebu’s decorated motorcycle circuit racers, who lives in Cebu South, looks forward to more convenient experience on the road using CCLEX.

“Mas convenient gyud siya especially moadto sa Cordova or sa mga Mactan nga resorts. Less travel time kay di na moagi og Mandaue and MEPZ, which is traffic gyud pirmi,” he said.

Arnold Balais, a multi-titled differently-abled athlete, also looks forward to the opening of CCLEX, saying it will definitely have an impact on athletes doing trainings in Mactan or in mainland Cebu.

“Malaki ang impact sa athletes kay maka-help ni’g dako sa mga travel namo… As Cebuano, maka-proud kay this is history gyud… state of the art..another feather sa cap sa mga Cebuanos,” Balais said. – Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon, JMO (FREEMAN)