The PHP23-billion Samal Island-Davao City Connector (SIDC) project is in full swing and is expected to be completed by 2027, the Department of Public Works and Highway in Davao Region (DPWH-11) said Tuesday.

During the pilot episode of the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas here, DPWH-11 Director Juby Cordon said the design and build of the SIDC project already accounted for an overall actual weighted physical accomplishment of 3.487 percent.

“They are finished with the design and at 3 percent,” Cordon said of the project, which started in September 2022 and is expected to be completed in August 2027.

Meanwhile, DPWH-11 spokesperson Dean Ortiz said the project is proceeding “smoothly” amid the ongoing expropriation cases on the Davao City side of the project.

“As for right of way, we are going smoothly. For the road right of way, around 25 percent or 14 of 55 affected lots in Davao City under negotiated sale were acquired while under expropriation cases, four out of six lots on the Davao side and 100 percent on the Samal side were expropriated,” Ortiz said.

At least 78 percent of the coconut trees affected in Davao City and 100 percent in Samal Island have already been acquired, he added.

“We do not have problems on the Samal side. In Davao, we can continue despite those problems,” Ortiz said.

The scenic bridge project crossing Pakiputan Strait will have landing points at the Samal Circumferential Road in Barangay Limao, Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS), and Davao City along the R. Castillo-Daang Maharlika junction.

The SIDC bridge has a length of 3.9 kilometers, including ramps in Davao City and a 24-meter wide grade road and roundabout at the Samal circumferential road.

Once completed, the bridge will be a four-lane, cable-stayed iconic conduit with a vertical navigational clearance of up to 47 meters.

The SIDC is expected to accommodate up to 25,000 vehicles daily, and reduce travel time between Samal and Davao City to five minutes compared to the existing 30-minute ferry boat ride. (PNA)