Davao City: The PHP19.3 billion Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) project is projected to be completed by September 2028, as confirmed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 11.
According to Philippines News Agency, Dean Ortiz, spokesperson for DPWH-11, announced during a press briefing that as of November 25, the project has reached an overall completion rate of 6.45 percent. The civil works component is 3.51 percent completed, while the detailed engineering design (DED) is nearing full completion at 97.97 percent. Ortiz highlighted that all remaining DED plans received approval as of November 5, 2024.
Bored piling works, which commenced on May 1 of this year, are progressing significantly. On the Samal Island side, all 74 bored piles for the land viaduct are finished. Meanwhile, on the Davao City side, 46.36 percent (51 out of 110) of the bored piles are completed, and pile cap construction began on September 12, 2024.
Ortiz further reported that 15.38 percent (four out of 26
) of the land viaduct substructure is completed. In Samal, issues related to road-right-of-way in Barangay Limao have been resolved, with all 10 affected properties settled and expropriated. In contrast, Davao City is still negotiating for 52 properties, with 36 already paid and 16 under processing. The DPWH aims to resolve these claims by the first quarter of 2025.
The SIDC bridge, a 3.9-kilometer, four-lane cable-stayed structure, will connect Davao City and the Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) over the Pakiputan Strait. It will offer a vertical navigational clearance of 47 meters and have landing points at the R. Castillo-Daang Maharlika junction in Davao City and the Samal Circumferential Road in Barangay Limao. Once operational, the bridge is expected to accommodate up to 25,000 vehicles daily, reducing travel time between Davao City and Samal from 30 minutes by ferry to just five minutes.
