China Funded $394 Davao-Samal Bridge Faces Right of Way and Environmental Issues

The Davao-Samal Bridge (SIDC) is a $394 million project that will connect Davao with Samal Island. The project’s groundbreaking began in 2022 but has since run into problems over right-of-way and environmental concerns.

Interlinking Islands, the Davao-Samal Bridge

The Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) is a proposed bridge project that will connect Davao City and Samal. The bridge will cross the Pakiputan Strait and will be 4.07 kilometers long. The Davao-Samal bridge is a flagship project under the Former President Duterte administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program.

Almost 90 percent or $325 million of the total cost of the bridge is funded through a loan from the Chinese state government. The bridge development will cost an overall $394 million to construct and build.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the SIDC was held in October of 2022, led by Philippine President Bong Bong Marcos. The project is now listed as one of the 12 mega bridge projects under the current administration’s Build, Better, More program of 2023.

Once completed, the bridge is expected to reduce travel time from Davao to Samal from a 30-minute ferry ride to only 5 minutes via vehicle. Aside from that, the bridge can accommodate 25,000 vehicles daily.

The Davao-Samal Bridge will be a suspended cable-stayed bridge. It will have a vertical clearance of 47 meters and its longest span is 270 meters. The bridge will also have a 24-meter wide 4-lane road and will cater to motor vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles.

Property Issues, with a target date of 2027

However, since the groundbreaking of the project in 2022, construction work on the bridge has stalled. Construction progress was briefly halted due to several concerns regarding the right-of-way (ROW) and land issues, delaying the project’s implementation.

Despite that, the contractor of the project, China Road and Bridge Corporation (CBRC) began work on foundations for the land and marine viaducts in April. The following month, the Department of Public Works and Highways began civil works on the project.

According to National Economic & Development Authority (NEDA) Davao regional director Maria Lourdes Damaso-Lim, the construction on the bridge would be immediately resumed once land and property concerns are resolved. As of April 26, 2024, the project’s overall actual weighted physical accomplishment is at 3.5 percent, and the Detailed Engineering Design (DED) progress is at 93 percent.

As it stands the target completion date for the Davao-Samal Bridge (SIDC) is by mid-2027.

Environmental Concerns over Samal’s “Paradise Reef”

The Paradise Reef is a 300-meter-long coral system that is located on the fringes of Samal Island, a popular tourist destination. The construction of the Davao-Samal Bridge poses a huge threat to the local reef ecosystem.

The current route of the bridge cuts across the Paradise Reef. Since the bridge was first announced, there have been calls to reroute the SIDC from cutting through the coral system.

Paradise Reef is home to 79 species of hard and 26 species of soft corals as well as 100 species of fish.