Roxas City Circumferential Road: Product of leaders’ vision, foresight for a progressive Capiz

Undoubtedly the most ambitious project so far initiated by Capiz leaders belonging to the Liberal Party, the long-overdue P704.2 million Capiz Circumferential Road is finally taking off after two decades or so since it was conceptualized by the late Capiz first district Congressman Gerardo  “Dinggoy” Roxas Jr,  with the ground –breaking of the project in Barangay Libas on April 13, 2012.

To grace the ground-breaking are DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson, DPWH Regional Director for Western Visayas Evelyn T. Barroso, Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas II and Mrs. Judy Araneta Roxas.

Roxas’ successor, his brother and now Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas ll, and the incumbent Capiz first district Congressman Antonio del Rosario, vigorously pursued the project.  The project is now being implemented by the Office of the First Congressional District  through the Capiz first engineering district of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and is being fully supported by Gov. Victor A. Tanco  and Roxas City Mayor Angel Alan B. Celino. It was endorsed by the Sangguniang Panlungsod led by Vice Mayor Ronnie T. Dadivas.

The private sector is also extending its support and cooperation to make the project a reality.

The project, according to engineer Julius Abela, assistant chief of the planning and design section of the DPWH Capiz first district engineering office,  spans 19.86 km and aims to provide fast and reliable support transport system between urban centers and depressed rural municipalities, promote tourism, increase economic activities and upgrade the standards of people living in the area.

The project is divided into two sections.  Section one starts at Culasi Port passing at the side of Cadimahan River.  It crosses the rivers of Cadimahan and Panay and proceeds towards the Ivisan-Roxas City Road.

Section two starts at the junction of the Ivisan-Roxas National Road and eventually connects at the national highway going to Panay town.

The project was included in the Medium Term Proposed Infrastructure Program under the Panay Island Road Network Development Project from 2010 to 2012.

The following elements are the major consideration in the evaluation of the circumferential road:

• Function of providing an uninterrupted smooth north-south arterial traffic system from Culasi Port towards the southern exit of Roxas City, bypassing the Central Business District of Roxas City
• The minimum influence of the traffic function at adjacent roads and the lowest impact on the surrounding environment.

Abela said that taking into consideration and the technical appropriateness of the road structure the following summarizes the results of the assessment:

• The diversion road shall function not only as a by-pass road for traffic coming from the Culasi port area, but will also serve as access road by traffic coming from barangays Libas, Dayao and Cagay in going to the pier area and towards the highway existing to Ivisan town;
• The major portion of the diversion road coming from Culasi pier and traversing along Cadimahan River and up to the end of the project road will be causeway-based.  At the portion traversing fishponds, cross-drains shall be provided in order that flow of water to the fishpond areas will not be disrupted.  The elevation of the causeways shall be 1.50 meters above the highest water level in the fishpond area;
• The road could be expanded into two lane asphalt road in the future and the RROW shall be for four-lane road;
• There are four bridges to be constructed as part of the project.  These are Cadimahan River 1 (120 meters); Cadimahan River 2 (50 meters), Panay River 1 (125 meters) and Panay River 2 (70 meters). (Publicity and Promotions Committee, CAPIZtahan 2012)