22/05/2022
The 1st bridge of Cebu...
The Mactan–Mandaue Bridge, officially the Sergio Osmeña Bridge, is a truss bridge that connects Mandaue City with Lapu-Lapu City in Metro Cebu, Philippines. It is one of three bridges that spans across the Mactan Channel, the Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX), also known as the Cebu–Cordova Bridge is the latest addition that was just opened this year 2022 on the 8th of May, the other being the Marcelo Fernan Bridge, and connects the islands of Cebu and Mactan.
On September 19, 1968, Cebu Governor Rene G. Espina, then Acting Secretary of Public Works, Transportation and Communications, met with Danao Mayor Beatriz Durano, Samboan Mayor Beatriz Calderon, Mandaue Mayor Demetrio Cortez, and S.C. Shangkuan, the bridge's contractor in Malacañang Palace to discuss with then President Ferdinand Marcos, about the construction of the bridge.
Designed by Ronald C. Cosep and Associates, it was constructed in 1970 after the ordination of Mandaue as a chartered city. Filipino engineers designed and created the bridge. Construction took 3 years as a means to facilitate trade between Cebu Island and Lapu-Lapu and was subsequently inaugurated and opened to the public on July 4, 1973.
* Remarkable History:
- In 1981, the crowd had marched in this bridge during the visit of Pope John Paul II.
- The 1989 coup attempt, there was an attempt to destroy this bridge, but was aborted.
- A ship bumped to this bridge during Typhoon RUPING in 1990. It survived but was unpassable for weeks.
This bridge sits astride the northern end of the Mactan Channel, which is a gateway to the Cebu International Port which is managed by the Cebu Port Authority, where about 80% of domestic and international shipping operators and shipbuilders in the Philippines are located. The Marcelo Fernan Bridge is located about 1.6 kilometers (0.99 mi) north of the bridge.
The bridge has only one pedestrian walkway, on the south side of the bridge. From Mandaue on Cebu Island, the bridge is accessed via A. C. Cortes Avenue. Lapu-Lapu on Mactan Island is accessed via the Basak–Marigondon Road, which intersects with the Manuel L. Quezon National Highway.
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is planning to conduct a feasibility study for the reconstruction of the 1st bridge that connects mainland Cebu and Mactan Island.
JICA proposed to add two more lanes in each direction. This means the bridge will have a total of six lanes once construction is completed.
(pct:Dawinx)
