Latest news with #LoretaMalaluan
Filipino Times
05-07-2025
- Business
- Filipino Times
DPWH eyes faster, cheaper method for EDSA rehab
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is exploring alternative construction technologies and materials to accelerate the rehabilitation of EDSA and reduce the project's overall cost and traffic impact. DPWH-NCR Director Engr. Loreta Malaluan said in an interview with Super Radyo dzBB on Saturday that the agency, in coordination with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Department of Transportation (DOTr), is evaluating methods that would allow the rehabilitation to proceed more efficiently along Metro Manila's busiest thoroughfare. Instead of the original plan involving full lane-by-lane excavation and reconstruction, engineers are now studying a technique that reinforces the existing road base with concrete and asphalt overlays. This approach would eliminate the need for complete pavement removal while still addressing structural concerns. 'This new technology is expected not just to expedite the construction schedule but also to improve the overall pavement condition,' Malaluan said. The DPWH is also conducting a time-and-motion study to assess the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed method. If adopted, it could significantly shorten the project timeline and reduce the total cost, currently estimated between P8 billion and P17 billion. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier suspended the EDSA rehabilitation plan, originally scheduled to start on June 13, to allow a one-month review. He instructed concerned agencies to explore faster and more modern construction techniques that would minimize disruption and shorten the rehabilitation period from the original two years to as little as six months or up to a year.
GMA Network
05-07-2025
- Automotive
- GMA Network
DPWH looking for new technology to shorten EDSA rehab
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is planning to employ a new construction method to shorten the rehabilitation of Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), Metro Manila's busiest thoroughfare. Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB on Saturday, DPWH-National Capital Region Director Engr. Loreta Malaluan said the DPWH, in coordination with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) and the Department of Transportation (DOTr), is exploring 'available road materials, procedures, and technologies that can be adapted to facilitate the implementation of the EDSA Rehabilitation Program in the shortest possible time.' This was in accordance with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive to shorten the rehabilitation of EDSA from the original two years to at least six months to about a year. Last month, Marcos suspended the EDSA rehabilitation initiative that was supposed to begin on June 13, as the project needs to be studied for one month to know if there are new technologies that can be used to hasten the rehabilitation of the 23.8-kilometer road. 'This new technology is expected not just to expedite the construction schedule but also to improve the overall pavement condition,' Malaluan said. In the original plan, EDSA would be reconstructed lane-by-lane, with each being replaced by a new road. Bonoan said the DPWH is studying the 'time and motion' process where a layer would be placed above the surface of EDSA. In the dzBB interview, Malaluan explained that the new method being studied would no longer involve total removal of the pavement but would only 'correct' the road's base using concrete and asphalt. She also said that the new method would also reduce the cost of the project. The whole project would cost between P8 billion and P17 billion. DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan, in an exclusive report by Joseph Morong on '24 Oras' on Thursday, said that the road's rehabilitation and the consequent implementation of the odd-even scheme will only begin in 2026 as 'it is already the rainy season in the country, which will be followed by the Christmas rush during the 'Ber' months.' —VBL, GMA Integrated News
