EDITORIAL - Costly retrofitting

It cost taxpayers P1.1 billion, according to President Marcos, to retrofit the San Juanico Bridge. This was his lament, even as he gladly led the ceremonies last Friday to reopen the 2.16-kilometer bridge linking Samar and Leyte provinces, six months after it had to be shut down for repairs.

The huge expense could have been avoided along with the massive socioeconomic disruptions in the area, the President said, if the bridge that was built 52 years ago had undergone regular maintenance.

As of last Friday, the bridge was only “partially finished,” he said, with the two-way load limit set at 15 tons. Full reopening is projected in the third quarter of 2026, when the bridge can again take a load limit of up to 33 tons going both ways.

Local government units affected by the six-month shutdown are considering opening the bridge to heavy trucks under a 30-ton load limit, but only at night and to one-way traffic.

San Juanico, built during the administration of the President’s father and namesake and currently the third longest in the country, was closed to all vehicles exceeding three tons last May. The consequent massive disruptions to mobility and the economy in the area prompted the President to declare a state of calamity in Eastern Visayas, to fast-track the rehabilitation of the bridge.

The problem he raised on proper maintenance likely afflicts many other public infrastructure nationwide. The still widening corruption scandal involving public works projects raises the possibility that maintenance has been largely skipped for many public infrastructure. This guarantees speedy deterioration and the need for expensive repairs or retrofitting.

Even the retrofitting is no guarantee of durability. This was dramatically illustrated in late February this year, in the collapse of the Cabagan-Santa Maria Bridge in Isabela province. The brand-new bridge was still in its soft opening when it collapsed under the weight of a truck transporting boulders.

It took 10 years for local contractor R.D. Interior Jr. Construction to build the 990-meter bridge at a cost of P1.22 billion. It underwent retrofitting in 2018, with additional reinforcement works in 2021, and yet it still could not take the weight of a truck.

What has happened to this probe? As of last August, then public works secretary Manuel Bonoan maintained the initial assessment of the department that the truck was to blame. Bonoan has since resigned and is facing investigation related to the flood control corruption scandal.

President Marcos expressed dismay over the massive cost to retrofit San Juanico. He may want to find out how many other bridges lack proper maintenance. Whether due to benign neglect, incompetence or potential for corruption, corrective measures are needed.