Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

Philippine transportation in the early years of 1900 is depending largely on

trails, water ways, earth roads, railroads, and partially graveled roads. Proper roads or

highways in these times were a dream for Filipinos. The development of roadways in

our country was initiated by the time the Americans stayed in our motherland. The

popular Macadam road type which originated from England was introduced. This later

on gained wide acceptance because of the abundant supply of stones and gravel. After

World War II, the rehabilitation, construction and beautification of roads and bridges

were continued by the new independent Philippine government. They used the money

paid by the Japanese government for the war damages as well as reparations. Others

were grants from the government of the United States of America.

After almost five decades, highways and expressways were constructed

through the help of foreign bank, who approved loans and financial assistance. As a

result of improvement in the road ways, the vehicles of different types started to flood

the roadways. The Land Transportation Office (LTO) revealed that there are about

80,000 new vehicles added to their list every year. By this tremendous rising of

vehicles occupying and using the roadways, the government alongside with other

agencies, decided to make an improvement and started to name the national road as

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the “Pan-Pacific Road” or some call it “National Road of the Philippines” and now its

name is “Dagan Maharlika Road” or what it known as MAHARLIKA HIGHWAY. It

connects Laoag City in Northern Luzon with Zamboanga City in Mindanao. It has a

total length of 3,517 kilometers or 2,185 miles.

National roads are roads continuous in extent that form part of the main trunk

line system; all roads leading to national ports, national seaports, parks or coast-to-

coast roads. National arterial roads are classified into three groups from the viewpoint

of function, i.e. North-south backbone, East-West Laterals and other strategic roads.

The elements to consider when planning National Roads are: limited frontage access;

development set well back from the highway; all access to premises provided via

provincial roads; number of intersection to be minimized; suitable at-grade

channelized intersections for minor flows and other elements; and no roadside

vendors.(DPWH Road Design Manual: 2012)

Roads are meant to facilitate mobility – movement of people and goods.

However, most roads are widened and developed for facilitating vehicles rather than

for pedestrians and non-motorized vehicle. Road widening is normally carried out

when the road is inadequate for the traffic using it, or when extra lanes are needed.

Road widening can improve traffic safety and capacity.

(https://www.slideshare.net/nityaswaraj/road-widening-ppt)

Recent developments in transportation research in the Philippines have resulted

in the formulation of a TIA Handbook or Traffic Impact Assessment Handbook. This

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handbook was prepared by the National Center for Transportation Studies (NCTS) in

order to standardize the conduct of TIA. In addition, it is worth giving more emphasis

on road safety as well as the traditional subjects such as volume control, traffic

forecasts, demand management, and congestion mitigation.

Some interesting subjects for consideration in the TIA are the interface

between the land use development and traffic, and this should be reviewed against the

guidelines of the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB). Parking

demand and restrictions should also be strictly followed as mandated by the National

Building Code. Preferably, parking demand should be based on local parking indices

and not on international practices since traffic local conditions very much differ from

other countries’ experiences. Pedestrian considerations should also be given more

weight in the planning stage.

Asia Pulse (2011) states that road widening will be able to manage increased

capacity of vehicles. It controls the traffic of new vehicles in the road and it makes

transportation process easy. The extension of the road once completed will

additionally ease the current traffic condition. It reduced according to time and

increases the driving comfort. (https://www.slideshare.net/nityaswaraj/road-widening-

ppt)

Later on, the government realized that there is a need for the national road to

be widened in order to accommodate the still increasing number of vehicles and also

ensure the safety, fast and smooth travel of motorists. On the 18th day of September in

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the City of Manila, Ferdinand E. Marcos, President of the Philippines amended the

Executive Order No. 113, as appearing the last sentence of paragraph I, General

Provisions, page 1 about the right-of-way of national road, as stated below:

“National roads shall have a right of way of nor less than

twenty (2) meters, provided that such minimum width,
may be reduced at the discretion of the Minister of
Public Highways to fifteen (15) meters in highly
urbanized areas and that a right of way of at least sixty
(60) meters shall be reserved for roads constructed
through unpatented public land and at least one hundred
twenty (120) meters reserved through naturally forested
area of aesthetic or scientific value”

This indicated there should not be an infrastructure along the Right-of-Way

(ROW) to ensure the proper utilization of national road, so as the government agencies

decided to eradicate the infrastructure along the Daang Maharlika. This project is

named as the Road Widening Program. This involves cutting of millions of trees and

removing any infrastructure along the road that is bounded by right-of-way. To some

people, this project will bring progress to any city or municipality, but to some it will

only bring disruption of the environment. This is stated because to embrace

development would mean the sacrifice of the environment. Much as we want to

protect and preserve our natural environment, however, development will always

affect the sanctity of the natural resources.

Pangasinan is the third biggest province in the whole Philippine Archipelago.

It derived its name from salt or “asin” in the vernacular. Owing to the rich and fine

salt beds which were the prime source of livelihood for the province’s coastal towns,

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PanagASINan or “Pangasinan” which means “where salt is made” came to be its

name.

The province is crescent-shaped and occupies 536,818 hectares of land area

which constitutes almost one-half (41.8%) of the total land area of Region 1 and 1.8%

of the total area of the Philippines. Composed of 4 cities and 44 municipalities, it is

bounded on the north by the Lingayen Gulf, La Union and Benguet, on the north-east

by Nueva Vizcaya, on the east by Nueva Ecija, on the south by Tarlac, and on the west

by Zambales and the China Sea.

Owing to its diverse cultural heritage rooted in centuries of glorious history

and a way of life that is a delightful combination of tradition, innovation and

creativity, the warm, polite, hospitable, hard-working and fun loving 2.65 million

Pangasinenses (2007 census) enjoy the best of Provincial Philippines where you find

both the familiar and unfamiliar world, abreast with modern technological times, but

with a preserved vast panorama of outstanding natural beauty and unique attractions.

Pangasinan boasts of stretches of white, sandy beaches, verdant hills, scenic

terrains, caves, waterfalls, ancient Hispanic churches, miraculous destinations for

devotees, a vast coastline for fishing, water sports or leisurely walking along the

Lingayen beach where one can get a glimpse of the world-famous Philippine sunset.

Being a gateway of sorts, the province is house to major and minor

telecommunication companies, bus and transport services, regional and local

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publications, radio stations, television networks , cable services, hotel and restaurant

chains, and a diversified variety of manufacturing and merchandising establishments.

Pangasinan is a crescent-shaped province that occupies 5,368.82 square

kilometers of verdant farmlands, hills, forests and rivers. To the east, it is bounded by

the mighty Cordillera Mountains, the Zambales ranges to the west, the rice plains of

Tarlac to the south and the Lingayen Gulf and the China Sea to the north. Because of

this strategic geographical positioning, it has always been described as a gateway of

sorts. Most travelers going up North often remember Pangasinan as the place where

they had last seen some semblance of civilization, comparing it with the sparsely

populated regions of the Ilocos and the Cagayan Valley (with the exception of Baguio

and the old Spanish towns of Vigan and Laoag).

Today, five (5) hours is the norm although private vehicles can sometimes

negotiate the route under four (4) hours. Most major bus companies ply the Manila-

Pangasinan route complemented by a host of local bus lines, which can be hired for

private purposes and tours. Most bus services operate on a 24-hour basis. Media

services are active in Pangasinan. National dailies as well as local publications

(several weeklies and one daily) are available. There are 20 radio stations and one

regional television station. Cable services have mushroomed even in areas far from the

urbanized centers of Dagupan, Urdaneta and Alaminos. At the latest survey,

Pangasinan has the highest tele-density in the country outside of Metro Manila with

the presence of three major telecommunication companies.

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 Pangasinan is rooted to the earth – agriculture based production remains as a

major source of income for the majority of the populace. Aqua-culture is also popular

in areas where instead of farmlands, variated squares of artificial ponds for fish rearing

are found. Through the years, as the demand for particular fish stocks rose and fell,

fishpond owners have adapted by sticking to traditionally favored, and stable growing

fish species like the bangus or milkfish, the Malaga and prawns. With agriculture

currently mobilizing more than half of the local labor force, the current administration

has seen the need to boost its efforts in this area.

Current census (Year 2015) figures place the population at 2,956,726

distributed in the province’s 44 towns, four cities and 1,364 barangays. English and

Filipino are widely spoken and are the mediums of instruction in all schools. Ilocano is

the major dialect, spoken by a greater portion of the population in the western and

eastern areas. There is some fear that the Pangasinan dialect, spoken predominantly in

the central areas, is losing its hold on the local tongue. Bolinao, at the northernmost tip

of western Pangasinan has a unique language of its own, also called Bolinao.

(www.pangasinan.gov.ph)

With the progress that Pangasinan is going through, it has become a popular

leisure spot for most Filipinos. However, the province also encountered its experience

with nature when the Road Widening project was introduced in the province. It meant

tampering with nature as tree cutting along Pangasinan road resumes in 2015. In an

article published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, it mentioned that contractors of a

7
road-widening project resumed the cutting of trees along the Manila North Road

(MNR) in Pozorrubio and Binalonan towns in Pangasinan province last week, toppling

at least six trees so far, the Inquirer learned.

“We already have a tree-cutting permit,” a backhoe operator, who declined to

give his name, told the Inquirer. But an official of the Department of Environment and

Natural Resources (DENR), who also asked not to be named, said he did not know of

any permit issued by his agency.

A copy of a memorandum from Environment Undersecretary Demetrio Ignacio

Jr., dated July 21, granted clearance to the DENR regional director to issue a special

tree-cutting permit to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Narchito Arpilleda, DPWH district office spokesperson, said the DENR issued the

special permit on Aug. 20.

The DENR memorandum, however, clarified that the permit covers only 158

dead and 28 dying trees along the MNR, which are among the 770 left standing after

the DPWH’s tree-cutting permit, issued in November 2013, expired in February 2014.

The trees did not survive after they were girdled, a process where a patch of

bark around the trunk is removed to prevent nutrients from circulating within the tree.

The DPWH has applied for a new permit, but nongovernment organizations

(NGOs) asked a court in Urdaneta City, also in Pangasinan, to issue a temporary

environmental protection order to save the trees. The court is still hearing the case.

8
 Ignacio’s memorandum required the DPWH to hold meetings and public

consultations with concerned local governments, NGOs and other groups to discuss

the urgency of the matter. “Prior to tree-cutting operations, placards or signboards

[measuring] 4 feet by 8 feet should be installed at conspicuous places to inform the

public that tree-cutting operations are authorized by the DENR,” it said.

It also said the cutting operations shall, at all times, be under the strict

supervision of DENR officials.

Arsenia Gaduang, 62, a resident of Barangay Rosario here, said she was

surprised to see her family’s fruit-bearing mango tree lying along the road on Sunday.

Its branches and leaves were strewn all over the place.

“It was standing on Sunday. We just went to the beach and when we came

home, it’s gone,” Gaduang said.

A narra tree standing about 10 meters away from the mango tree was felled on

Monday, she said. “We thought they will no longer cut it because last July, they

pruned it and they told me they will not cut it.”

Virginia Pasalo, trustee of the Women in Development Foundation and one of

those who asked the court to stop the tree cutting, said the old trees along the highway

were victims of a “massacre.”

“[These trees were] trying to resuscitate themselves from the attempted murder

not so many months ago. They are already breathing and moving away from intensive

care, and the angels of death have dealt them the final blow. It is heartless; it is an act

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of the devil,” Pasalo said. (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/719105/tree-cutting-along-

pangasinan-road-resumes#ixzz4dmEVM0nN)

However, not everyone believes that cutting trees can be a solution to a road-

widening project. In another article published in November 19, 2015 in the Philippine

Star, a GERMAN urban expert believes that road widening works in Cebu today are

not answering the traffic problems.

“Road widening projects are not totally solving the problem..I don’t think the

streets need to be widened because it is negatively affecting public spaces,” said

Connective Cities senior project manager Dr. Manfred Poppe, who was in Cebu

yesterday to hold a dialogue with local urban practitioners.

Connective Cities is a joint venture between the Association of German Cities,

the German non-profit organization Engagement Global Service for Development

Initiatives, and the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) in behalf of the German

Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

It serves as a venue for dialogue where urban experts share practice-oriented

experience on sustainable urban development, learn together and develop ideas for

urban projects. Through dialogue and learning formats, it mobilizes German and

international know-how on sustainable urban development.

For the Philippines, Cebu was identified as the preferred site, being a second

city after Metro Manila. The Connective Cities project, Poppe said, is mostly

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undertaken in secondary or medium-sized cities where growth is speedy and

considered more attractive sites for migration among rural dwellers.

Poppe cited the worsening traffic conditions in Cebu, where road widening is

one of the massive projects undertaken by the government in the hope of alleviating

traffic congestion.

However, Poppe suggests there should be a reduction of car ownership in Cebu

and a car pooling system in place. However, he recognized that the reason car

ownership in the country is growing is primarily due to the increase in purchasing

power of the Filipinos, coupled with low-quality public transportation.

Car ownership in developing countries is a status symbol, Poppe said, which

makes it even more attractive to buy a car, and consequently contributing to traffic.

“In low income societies, cars are considered as status symbols... But in

Germany, less of the youth wants to own a car,” Poppe said.

According to the National Economic Development Authority 7 Director Efren

Carreon, who was present during yesterday’s dialogue, Germany has one of the most

efficient integrated public transport systems in the world.

Meanwhile, Cebu and Manila were recently ranked as the least livable cities

among the member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC),

especially in the areas of connectivity, environmental sustainability and health and

welfare.

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 The Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) study entitled “Building Better Cities,”

released on the sidelines of the Apec CEO Summit Wednesday, showed Manila

ranking 22nd and Cebu 26th among the 28 APEC cities surveyed. “Our study ranks

Cebu, the Philippines’ second-largest city, low in connectivity, including airport

connectivity and access from the airport to the business district center,” PwC said.

During the APEC meetings in Cebu held in October, Chinese Taipei Ministry

of Transportation and Communications Chi-Kuo Lin called Cebu’s traffic situation a

“nightmare.” (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/business/2015/11/19/road-widening-

not-solution-442443)

This study will focus on assessing the utilization of road widening projects in

the 2nd Engineering District in the Province of Pangasinan. The Pangasinan Second

District Engineering Office comprised the towns of Lingayen, Bugallon, Aguilar,

Mangatarem, Binmaley, Urbiztondo, Labrador, Basista, Dagupan City, Mangaldan,

San Jacinto, Manaoag, and San Fabian in the Pangasinan.

Conceptual Framework

Republic Act No. 917 is AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR AN EFFECTIVE

HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, MODIFY APPORTIONMENT OF HIGHWAY

FUNDS AND GIVED TO THE PROVINCES, CHARTERED CITIES AND

MUNICIPALITIES IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROADS AND STREETS, AND

FOR OTHER PURPOSES. This Act may be cited as the "Philippine Highway Act of

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nineteen hundred and fifty-three (1953)." The improvement, reconstruction, paving

and construction of "national" highways or parts of highways in the "national" systems

under the provisions of this Act, and all contracts, plans, specifications and estimates

relating thereto, shall be undertaken by the Division of Highways of the Bureau of

Public Works subject to the approval of the Secretary of Public Works and

Communications: Provided, That where the cost of any single project exceeds ten

thousand pesos the work shall, after due public bidding, be awarded by contract.

Section 15 explains the types of surface, widths of roadway and rights-of-way

where only such durable types of surface and kinds of materials shall be adopted for

the construction and reconstruction of any highways which is a part of the primary

national or "national" systems as will adequately meet the existing and probable future

traffic needs and conditions thereon. The Secretary of Public Works and

Communications shall approve the types and widths of construction and

reconstruction, and the character of improvement, repair and maintenance in each

case, consideration being given to the type and character which shall be best suited for

each locality and to the probable character and extent of the future traffic. All

highways constructed or reconstructed under the provisions of this Act shall be free

from tolls of all kinds.

All highways in the "national" system to be improved, paved, reconstructed or

constructed after the passage of this Act shall have a right-of-way of ample width and

wearing surface of an adequate width which shall not be less than the minimum

13
standards now established by the Division of Highways of the Bureau of Public

Works, unless, in the opinion of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications,

such is impracticable by reason of physical conditions, excessive costs, probable

traffic requirements or legal obstacles.

Section 16 talked about Road Engineering. The cost of engineering which shall

include surveys, preparation of plans, specifications and estimates, inspection and

unforeseen contingencies shall not exceed ten per centum of the total estimated cost of

construction.

The Department of Public Works and Highways issued Department Order No.

73 s. 2014 entitled, “PROHIBITED USES WITHIN THE RIGHT-Of-WAY OF

NATIONAL ROADS” which states that: The presence of fallen electrical and other

utility poles, tangled/twisted transmission/distribution and other lines of cable,

communications and utility service providers; and felled trees along national roads as

a result of natural and man-made calamities create imminent danger to lives and

properties and hamper speedy relief operations, prompt delivery of basic goods and

services and the immediate restoration of damaged public infrastructure facilities.

In view hereof, and pursuant to the provisions of Section 23 of Presidential

Decree (PD) No. 17, also known as the Revised Philippine Highway Act, as amended,

declaring as unlawful for any person to usurp any portion of a right-of-way, to convert

any part of any public highway, bridge, wharf or trail to his own private use or to

obstruct the same in any manner; and the provisions of the National Building Code of

14
the Philippines (PD No. 1096) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations, and in the

interest of public safety and convenience and of the common good, all

Regional/District Engineering Offices are hereby directed to immediately remove or

cause the removal of all obstructions and prohibited uses within the right-of-way

(ROW) of all national roads within their respective jurisdictions and henceforth

prohibit the presence/occurrence of the following structures, objects and such other

similar items and activities along our national roads as well as strictly disallow the

building, erection, construction, planting, and fabrication of the same, thus:

1. All kinds of temporary and permanent structures, such as buildings, houses,

shanties, stores, shops, stalls, sheds, canopies, billboards, signages,

advertisements, fences, walls, railings, basketball courts, barangay halls,

garbage receptacles, and the like;

2. Posts and towers of Electric Cooperatives and Major Electric Power

Distributors; distribution lines; posts for cables of phones and mobile service

providers;

3. Driveways and ramps occupying or protruding to the sidewalk;

4. Trees, shrubs, and plant boxes;

5. Humps, whether permanent or temporary;

6. Dumping and storage of construction materials, such as sand, gravel, cement,

lumber and steel bars, earth spoils, waste materials, debris, embankment,

heaps, and the like;

15
 7. Vehicles and equipment, including junked items that are parked, occupying or

protruding to the sidewalk or shoulder;

8. Vending, repair of vehicles, and other businesses within the sidewalk and other

parts

9. Disposal of household/commercial/industrial wastewater and sewage into the

sidewalk, curb and gutter, and carriageway;

10. Raising of animals or allowing them to roam within the ROW;

11. Washing and drying of clothes, crops, and similar items;

Should clearing operations for road widening; improvement and/or

rehabilitation are to be conducted, no compensation shall therefore be paid and

allowed on the removal of these obstructions.

It is further directed that in cases where Applicants from Utility Agencies

(collectively, Electric Cooperatives and Major Electric Power Distributors, Phones,

Mobile, and Cable Service providers and the like) and its respective contractors shall

request the construction, building and/or erection of posts and towers for their

distribution lines, subject Applicants should therefore be advised that they should now

commence the acquisition of their own right-of-way to fulfill their specific mandate.

Note further that in the context of this Order, the ROW shall include the carriageway,

curb and gutter, sidewalks, shoulders, canals and other portions within the defined

road right-of-way.

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Green groups to DPWH: Good road design includes trees

The effects of a 2012 memo issued by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr,

giving the DPWH blanket approval to cut trees in eight (8) regions, are being felt.

MANILA, Philippines – Isn't it possible to widen roads without cutting down

trees? This was the question posed by environmentalists to the secretaries of the

Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of

Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) during a forum on Thursday, July 3.

Trees should be part of urban development instead of a victim to it, said urban

planner and architect Felino Palafox Jr. Rather than cut decades-old trees to widen

highways, the government should "provide alternative solutions to traffic congestion

such as diversion roads, widening of alignments that do not involve cutting of old

trees, or containing existing trees within an island, providing expansion through outer

lanes," reads the joint manifesto of green groups like the Citizens' Organization

Concerned with Advocating Philippine Environmental Sustainability (COCAP).

In his presentation, Palafox showed how progressive countries like Singapore,

Dubai, Japan, Warsaw, and the Netherlands used trees and greenery as centerpieces

for their cities. "Petrol-rich Dubai even borrowed money just to invest in green

infrastructure and import trees to make its city beautiful. Singapore imports acacia

trees from the Philippines to line its roads," said Palafox.

The value of trees to urban spaces is beyond valuable, he said. Trees help bring

down the temperature of concrete jungles, absorb air pollution and alleviate flooding.

17
They beautify cities and contribute to higher quality of living of urban residents.

Including trees in road design need not compromise government standards for safe and

wide roads, he emphasized.

To make his point clear, he flashed designs of 20-, 30-, and 40-meter-wide

roads featuring trees. These roads fulfill government standards requiring national

primary roads to have at least 4 lanes or at least 15 meters in width.

He also showed a design to redevelop MacArthur Highway, which is now

being widened for the Manila North Road widening project.

So far, 1,059 trees have been cut along the major thoroughfare. A cement road

now lies where they once stood. Some 770 trees remain standing since the cutting

permit given to DPWH expired last February.

But Palafox's design preserves the trees, some of which are 50-year-old acacia
trees.

Such roads are already in use today. For instance, the portion of Katipunan

Avenue near the University of the Philippines Diliman and Manila Water still boasts

towering acacia trees despite a road-widening project. The survival of these trees had

also been fought for by environmental advocates back in the early 2000s.

Palafox committed to helping DPWH with creating tree-incorporated road

designs, designs DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson said he is open to. However,

because of budget allocations already set for the year, the implementation may have to

wait.

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 COCAP president Esther Pacheco also asked Singson to look into the "Share

the Road Movement," a campaign promoting collective forms of transport as a way to

lessen cars on the road, ease traffic congestion, and reduce air pollution. Providing

bike and pedestrian lanes and investing in more efficient bus and train systems would

encourage more people to leave their cars in the garage and take public transport. With

fewer cars, there will be less need to widen roads, she said.

Trees vs road right of way

Thousands of trees have already been cut in Pangasinan, Laguna, Sorsogon,

Baguio, and Cebu to give way to DPWH's road-widening projects meant to bring

development and ease of access to the provinces. The trees are often cut because they

stand on "our existing road right of way," said DPWH's Singson.

Though existing laws prohibit the cutting of trees in public spaces, exceptions

have been made. One of these exceptions, under section 2.2 of Executive Order No 23

(the moratorium on logging), is the cutting of trees to recover right of way for roads

being built by the DPWH.

Tree-cutting to prepare sites for tree plantation, the cutting of pest-infested

trees, and tree-cutting associated with cultural practices are also exceptions, explained

DENR Secretary Paje.

A memorandum issued by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr in 2012

served as a blanket approval for DPWH to cut trees in 8 regions: Regions I, II, IV-A,

19
V, VIII, IX and XI. Aside from these decrees, many communities actually support the

road-widening, believing it would bring economic development and ease traffic

congestion, said Singson. This is especially the case when road works necessitate

either the cutting of trees or the removal of houses obstructing the right of way.

"If we consult with the affected communities, more often than not their answer

is, go ahead and cut them instead of removing our houses. This is where we start

having problems. The communities allow their trees to be cut but the NGOs would

rather that we do not."

By law, all roads are supposed to have easements or empty spaces running the

length of the road. Easements are a form of weather-proofing because they ensure

nothing will fall on the road in times of natural calamity. The inaccessible roads in the

aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda underline their importance.

"If you see our experience in Yolanda, the roads were intact but they were not

passable because of fallen trees and electric poles," said the DPWH chief. But citizen

uproar has made Singson think twice before cutting any more trees.

Now, when they see the trees are more or less aligned, DPWH personnel and

contractors are instructed not to cut them but to build the road as wide as possible until

it reaches the trees. But when the trees are not aligned, they have no choice but to cut

them.

"For public safety, we cannot have crooked roads," he said.

20
Hiding behind the budget?

What was the DENR's role in all this? DENR Secretary Ramon Paje said that

while protecting trees is upheld by the Constitution, he had to give in to the

development projects since they were already given a budget.

"I cannot disobey the Appropriations Act. Those roads will be built," he told

environmental advocates. His agency is also limited by the exceptions granted to road

works, especially projects stamped as priorities by President Benigno Aquino III.

Since Ochoa's memorandum is in force, the DENR focuses on ensuring the

DPWH complies with the requirement that, for every tree cut in the name of road-

widening, they must plant 100 3-foot-high seedlings.

"The DPWH is complying very well," he said.

Paje urged advocates to instead be "forward-thinking" and instead help the

DENR save urban parks and trees in protected areas. Despite assurances by both

secretaries, reactors from NGOs still had grievances to air.

Environmental lawyer Galahad Pe Benito questioned where the DENR's

loyalties lie. It seemed Ochoa's controversial permit was not even questioned by the

agency, despite its mandate to prevent environmental destruction.

"The DENR is supposed to be an advocate of the environment but it seems to

be leaning more towards economic development," he said. He also demanded to know

how road-widening projects worth billions in taxpayer's money seemed to not take

into account environmental impacts.

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 "Based on Presidential Decree No 1152 (Philippine Environment Code), all

government agencies should consider environmental impacts for all their projects.

Under the law, government must prove they are implementing the best project. This

requires public consultation and obtaining position papers from affected groups,"

Benito said.

The fact that there was no public consultation before budget allocation could

be grounds for nullifying the projects, he said. If there was genuine consultation,

suggestions like road designs with trees could have been considered for

budgeting. (http://www.rappler.com/science-nature/environment/62308-green-groups-

dpwh-denr-trees-road-widening)

Related Literature

Administration of public highways in the United States is a governmental

function, responsibility for which is delegated, in whole or in part, to appropriate

agencies of the federal government, to the various state governments, and to numerous

local government units. (Bateman: 2010)

Maintenance is performed to the most part by the various highway agencies

themselves. Highway maintenance forces have the responsibility for keeping roads

open and traffic moving under all conditions.

In Japan, as a rule, national expressways and designated sections of national

highways are administered by the Minister of Construction, and non-designated

22
sections of national highways are administered by relevant governors or mayors of the

designated cities. Although their road law provides for proxy of authority in certain

instances, the maintenance, repair and disaster rehabilitation remains the exception.

(Borg: 2006)

Haas (2011) noted that most highway agencies in North America establish a

relatively comprehensive organizational structure, inventory of equipment work force,

and so on for maintenance of their roads. The basic levels of maintenance

management for such highway agencies are usually organized as field, regional, and

central. He further stated the following responsibilities of the set-up.

The central or head office level of maintenance management

has overall responsibility for determining the maintenance program
according to the priorities established and within the available budget.
Performance standards are taken into account in establishing the
program. Standards for the system are also established and controlled at
this level, based on studies of the costs and benefits involved.
The regional level, or the district level of some agencies, has
responsibility for determining maintenance priorities over an area
covered by a number of field units or locations. These priorities are
related to the specified system of standards and are determined with the
use of pavement evaluation information.
The field level is responsible for doing the actual work according
to standards. Because these standards should also reflect the efficiency
of maintenance operations, it is the field-level work that provides the
basic input for updating budgets and lists of priorities. Although the field
of maintenance management works within specified budgets and
standards, it is also responsible for connecting localized deficiencies,
and this requires on-site judgment and experience.

These findings show the similarities and other countries of the levels of

maintenance management systems, the set-up and functions of the Department of

23
Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in the maintenance of national roads here in the

Philippines. The district or field offices of the DPWH are also responsible for doing

the actual works according to standards correcting for localized deficiencies thus

providing basic inputs for updating budgets and lists of priorities.

Extent of Implementation

Length of Road Covered

The study conducted by Harral,et al (2003) showed that after many years of

maintaining their highways by administration, several countries have recently adopted

maintenance by contract for both their routine and periodic maintenance works. The

study was intended for the detailed examination of the extensive experiences with

contracting maintenance for federal highways in Brazil from 1990-2002, Columbia,

Argentina, Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, the Central African Republic, the United Kingdom

and briefly in the former Yugoslavia.

It found out that Maintenance by Contract has proven to be a workable

undertaking in countries at diverse levels of development and with diverse forms of

social and economic organization. With relative freedom from entangling “red tape”

and the ability to pay higher salaries to attract, retain, and motivate staff, contractors

have, in some cases, like in Nigeria, succeeded in getting maintenance done where all

other approaches have failed. Where sufficient profit incentives exist, contractors are

normally attracted to maintenance even in remote areas.

24
 According to the study, the majority of work should be done under

competitively tendered, unit price contracts. A small element, typically not exceeding

10-15 percent of routine maintenance could best be done under force account to

simplify administration of items which are difficult to measure, and also to add to

management flexibility, say emergency operations.

Experiences on the nine countries mentioned showed that except for the initial

experience in Columbia, in general, contracting of routine as well as periodic

maintenance has proven to be efficacious. In most cases, maintenance work is now

getting done where little has been done before.

Oglesby (2012) noted that governments devote public funds to highway

improvements because they provide benefits to society as a whole or as individuals.

Good transportation facilities raise the level of the entire economy by providing for

ready transportation of goods, they are of assistance, in problems of national defense,

they made easier the provisions of community services such as police and fire

protection, medical care, schooling, delivery of the mails and many others. On the

other hand, road improvements take money that might be used for other productive

purposes by individuals or by government. They can be justified, only, if, in net sum,

the consequences are favorable, that is, if cost reductions to highway users and other

beneficiaries of the improvement exceed the costs, including some allowance for

return on the money invested.

25
 According to Osborne (1992), “A minimum expense is, of course, highly

desirable; the road which is truly the cheapest is not the one which has the least

money, but the one which makes the most profitable returns in proportion to the

amount expended upon it.

Increased expenditures for road maintenance are considered unavoidable in the

future. Therefore, it will be even more important in the future to perform well-planned

and efficient maintenance and management under the restrictions of limited

expenditures and personnel resources. Accordingly, the demand for more efficient

maintenance and management is expected to increase even more. (Arellano: 1992)

One of the recommendations of the OECF-SAPS Team (1994) on Philippine

Road Projects states that road maintenance budget should be increased. They noted

that the present level of budget is enough only for routine maintenance of shoulders,

roadsides, drainage structures, and a very limited pavement maintenance. The team

further recommended that modification of EMK factors should be considered.

Maintenance budget requirements largely depends on pavement conditions, however,

present EMK factors do not include a factor on pavement condition.

They suggested that if EMK factors remain, allocation of maintenance budget

to each road section should be made flexible at each District office level, in

accordance with pavement conditions.

26
 These studies are related to this research as they highlight the rationale behind

the huge budget that is inevitably allocated by governments to the maintenance and

expansion of their highways.

MAINTENANCE OF THE ROADWAY FEATURES

Carriageway

Wright (1987) stated that in the United States of America, about half of the

highway maintenance dollar goes for the care of the road surface. For gravel roads,

this involves blading and occasional resurfacing. For surface treatments and low type

bituminous surfaces, patching, seal coating, or possibly loosening, oiling, remixing

and re-laying are involved. For higher type surface, such as bituminous concrete and

Portland cement, concrete, removal and replacement of failed areas and resurfacing

are appropriate treatments. Mud-jacking or undersealing Portland cement concrete

pavements are common operation. At times, slick bituminous surfaces require

roughening, burning, or a nonsked seal.

In general, the same materials and methods are used for surface construction

and for surface maintenance.

Maintenance of the Shoulders

Shoulder maintenance procedures depend on the surface character of the area.

Sod shoulders must be mowed and occasionally bladed down to the level of the

27
roadway so that water is not trapped in the travelled way. Care of the shoulders

protected by bituminous blankets or surface treatments is the same as for roadways

with like surfaces. Gravel and earth shoulders are maintained by blading under proper

weather conditions. (Baldos: 1996)

Rutting or settling of the shoulders that leaves a drop-off at the pavement edge

creates a serious accident hazard. If this condition develops, it should be corrected as

soon as possible by reconstruction, resurfacing, or other appropriate means.

Maintenance of Roadside Structures

One of the problems in roadway design and construction are stability of fills

and slope. At times, materials in cut bank will slip downward, often carrying portions

of the roadway or shoulder along. For both natural and artificial slopes, landslide,

erosion due to rain and falling stone requires the protection of slope for safety of users.

Sodding is one effective slope protection when the sort of sodding can meet the

nature of soil and weather conditions. Sometimes, sodding is applied with concrete

frame structure. Also, sodding is effective for landscaping of highway.

Slope protection structure is designed and constructed to protect the slope

where sodding is inadequate and where slope length is very long or slope is very steep.

There are several types of structures such as shotcrete, gunite shorting, stone masonry,

concrete block pitching, concrete frame, gabion, shed or fence for filling stone, and

concrete retaining wall.

28
 For all slips and settlement of cur and fill slopes which affect the road, the

maintenance group should place warning signs, cones and barriers around the site.

Severe damage, where the road is cut by a landslide or washout will usually have to be

repaired by special crews after needing heavy construction equipment.

Where there has been severe erosion or slips which have removed part of the

carriageway or shoulder, or if erosion of slopes threatens the road structure, repairs are

needed urgently.

Establishing grass on other vegetation on the slope may be a cheaper form of

protection.

A variety of appurtenances within highway rights-of-way are provided for the

safety of users. Such features include guard rails, barriers, impact attenuators,

pedestrian overpasses and underpasses, and fences to restrict access of pedestrians and

animals. Highway safety devices should be frequently and systematically inspected

and repaired on a high priority basis.

Maintenance of Drainage Structures

Drainage maintenance involves keeping ditches, culverts, structures, and

appurtenances such as drop inlets and catch basins clean and ready to carry the next

flow of water. Sediments deposited using periods of heavy flow must be removed.

Brush, branches, and other debris that collect in trash racks or at culvert and structures

must be disposed of. Badly eroded channels and dikes must be repaired, and paving,

29
seeding, sodding, riprap, bank protection, or other means must be adopted to prevent

recurrence.

Vegetation Control

This class of maintenance includes mowing, weed eradication and control. The

mowing of roadsides is done to provide better sight distances, improve drainage,

reduce fire hazards, and improve the appearance of the roadway. Mowing should be

started as soon as the grass or weeds are high enough to be cut, and it should be

continued at periodic intervals, when necessary, throughout the growing season.

Chemicals may be used on roadside areas to retard vegetation growth and

lessen the frequency of mowing, especially in areas that are difficult to mow.

The care of trees and shrubs along the roadsides may include planting,

trimming, fertilizing, spraying, and the construction of tree wells. Major tree surgery

and the removal of broken limbs caused by storms are often necessary.

Maintenance of Traffic Signs and Lane Markings

Signs, signals, and marking for the direction, warning, and regulation of traffic

are essential to traffic safety and must be properly maintained. (DPWH-BRS: 1991)

This work includes the installation, repair, and painting of signs and the care of

pavement markings. Because of their location, many pavement markings must

30
necessarily be renewed practically every year. Automatic traffic signals have to be

checked, repaired and often readjusted to traffic conditions.

The OECF-SAPS Team (1994) recommended that safety facilities of roads,

lane marks, signs, signals, or other facilities should properly be installed to newly

constructed roads here in the Philippines. It is said that serious accidents are most

frequently seen on the Manila North Road where the condition is the best among

national highways. Accidents might increase parallel to the road improvements.

These maintenance activities are similar to those adopted by the DPWH in the

list of maintenance activities for the carriageway, shoulder, roadside structures,

drainage structures, vegetation control, traffic signs and lane markings which are

relevant to this study.

The researcher being employed the Department of Public Works and

Highways has always been bothered whenever he sees that the road widening projects

are not being utilized by the residents as they are mandated by law. Hence, he opted to

conduct this study to determine the level of awareness of the respondents on the

proper utilization and purpose of the various road widening projects in the province of

Pangasinan.

31
 INDEPENDENT DEPENDENT VARIABLE
VARIABLE

* Status of Previous Road

Conditions
* Present Status of the Roads
Road Widening Area after the Road Widening
Project of the 2nd Engineering Project
District of Pangasinan - Appearance
- Materials Used
- Necessity of the Road
* Utilization of the Road
Widening Project

Figure 1. Paradigm of the Study

Statement of the Problem

This study focused on assessing the state of the road before and after the road

widening projects in the 2nd Engineering District in the Province of Pangasinan.

It sought to answer the following questions:

1. What is the status of the previous road conditions before the implementation of

the road widening at the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan?

2. What is the present status of the road widening projects 2nd Engineering

District of Pangasinan in terms of:

a. Appearance

b. Materials Used

c. Necessity of the road

32
 3. How are the road widening projects utilized as perceived by the residents?

4. What measures may be proposed to properly utilize the road widening projects

in the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan as mandated by the Department

of Public Works and Highways?

Hypotheses

The researcher anchored this study on the following hypotheses:

1. The road widening project is used as avenue for the slow-moving vehicles to

ease traffic congestion; and

2. The public is aware of the proper utilization of the road widening projects in

the Province of Pangasinan.

Significance of the Study

This study will greatly benefit and provide important information to the

following organizations and public and government agencies.

1. The Academic Community – This study will be a useful source of information

that will help the teachers, students, and heads of schools and department to

educate students and co-workers in the impact of the road widening in the

environment and on the economic status of Pangasinan. It will also serve as a

good medium of topic in the lessons concerning environment and economy.

33
 2. The Government and Private Sectors and Agencies – This study will contribute

on the part of government agencies and private sectors that have a link or

related to the fields of engineering like the Office of Public Works and

Highways (DPWH) and in the Local Government Unit of Pangasinan that is

responsible in the said project. This study will also be a good information

feeder in the part of private sectors, to further realize the potential of

Pangasinan.

3. The Riding Public and Motorists – This study will elevate the level of

awareness of the residents of Pangasinan on the proper utilization of the road

widening projects in order to maximize its full access and purpose.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

The study focused on assessing the National Roads in the 2nd Engineering

District of Pangasinan before and after the road widening projects of the DPWH in the

Province of Pangasinan. It determined the status of the road widening projects before

the implementation of the road widening project and after the roads have been

widened including the utilization of the said road widening projects after it was

constructed. It did not include the budgetary requirements involved in the

implementation of the road widening project.

34
Definition of Terms

The following terms are defined as they are used in the study:

Barangay Roads – are rural roads located either outside the urban area of city

or outside industrial, commercial or residential subdivisions which act as feeder farm-

to-market roads, and which are not otherwise classified as national, provincial, city or

municipal roads.

Bypasses – are countermeasures aimed at improving safety and reducing the

volume of through traffic inside the community. In the Philippines, this is a common

practice particularly around the countryside.

City Roads – these are roads/streets within the urban area of the city to be

designated as such by the Sangguniang Panglungsod.

Expressways – These roads are the longer distance transport routes for

motorized traffic. They provide the transportation link between regions and provinces.

Their primary function is movement and not access.

Municipal Roads – these are roads/streets within the poblacion area of a

municipality to be designated by such by the Sangguniang Bayan.

National Roads – are roads continuous in extent that form part of the main

trunk line system; all roads leading to national ports, national seaports, parks or coast-

to-coast roads.

Pedestrianized Areas/Routes – these are areas from which all motorized

vehicles are excluded to improve safety. They would include all routes where non-

35
motorized traffic has sole priority. This would include purpose-built footpaths and

bikeways that often form a totally separate network to that for motorized traffic in

residential areas.

Provincial Roads – are roads connecting one municipality with another; all

roads extending from a municipality or from a provincial or national roads to a public

wharf or railway station; and any other road to be designated as such by the

Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

Road Network – is defined as a hierarchy in terms of road types and

according to the major functions the road will serve. (DPWH Road Safety Manual:

2012)

36
 Chapter 2

RESEARCH DESIGN

This chapter presents the type of research used, the techniques for data

gathering, and the sources of data.

Method of Research and Technique for Data Gathering

This study utilized the descriptive survey research to determine the status of

the main roads before the implementation of the road widening project of the DPWH

in Pangasinan and after the road widening project including the utilization of the road

widening projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways.

Descriptive research designs help provide answers to the questions of who,

what, when, where, and how associated with a particular research problem; a

descriptive study cannot conclusively ascertain answers to why. Descriptive research

is used to obtain information concerning the current status of the phenomena and to

describe "what exists" with respect to variables or conditions in a situation.

(http://lynn-library.libguides.com/c.php?g=549455&p=3771803)

Sources of Data

The primary sources of data were extracted from the questionnaire distributed

to the respondents of this study.

37
 The secondary sources of data were collated taken from the files of the

Department of Public Works and Highways located in Rosales, Pangasinan. The rest

of the materials were taken from the internet.

Respondents of the Study

The respondents of this study were the residents of the municipalities and cities

covered by the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan selected by purposive sampling

with a total of 450 respondents. The breakdown of the respondents per locality is

found in Appendix D.

Using raosoft.com, the sample from the population of Pangasinan (2015

Census) numbering 2,956,726 was computed as 450 respondents.

It can be seen from Appendix D that out of the 13 localities covered by the 2nd

Pangasinan Engineering District, six (6) areas had 40 respondents while the remaining

seven (7) localities had 30. This could be attributed to the fact that there were more

road widening projects that were constructed by the 2nd Engineering Districts in the six

(6) localities that had 40 respondents as compared to 30 respondents each for the other

localities.

38
Procedure of the Study

The researcher used the questionnaire as research instrument which was

researcher-constructed and tried out to the 10 residents of Lingayen who were not

respondents of the study.

The said questionnaire was distributed to the selected respondents of this study

chosen using the purposive sampling method. The researcher identified the

municipalities and cities of the 2nd Pangasinan Engineering District where the road

widening projects are located and gave the questionnaire to the residents of the area.

Method of Data Analysis and Interpretation

Percentage was used to compute for the results of this study as presented by

the formulae below:

The formula for percentage is % = f/N x 100.

39
 Chapter 3

PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

This chapter of research presents the significant findings of the study. The

statistical data were presented through tables followed by its statistical descriptions

including analysis and interpretation of the results.

Status of Roads Before the

Road Widening Project

Table I below presents the answers of the respondents on the status of the

roads in the localities covering the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan before the

implementation of the Road Widening Project of the DPWH covering the

Municipalities of Basista, Binmaley, Bugallon, Aguilar, Labrador, Lingayen,

Mangaldan, Manaoag, Mangatarem, San Fabian, San Jacinto, Urbiztondo, and the City

of Dagupan.

It can be seen from Table I that out of the 11 indicators, topping the list on the

status of the roads in the localities in Pangasinan covered by the 2nd Engineering

District is the indicator on “The roads in our area are wide enough for vehicles”

according to 307 or 68.22 percent of the respondents. This is quite a surprising result

from the respondents due to the fact that it appears they are already contented with the

width of their roads and yet the government through the DPWH still has to do road

widening projects.

40
 Table I

STATUS OF ROADS IN THE 2ND ENGINEERING DISTRICT

OF PANGASINAN BEFORE THE ROAD WIDENING PROJECT
n = 450

INDICATOR f %
The roads in our area are wide enough for
vehicles. 307 68.22
The roads are made up of concrete. 304 67.56
Roads are poorly painted. 279 62.00
The roads are well constructed, fine and
no potholes. 235 52.22
The roads in our area are too narrow. 213 47.33
There are cracks on the road. 181 40.22
There are roads that are not completely
filled with concrete or asphalts. 147 32.67
The roads are made of rough materials
like gravel. 121 26.89
The roads are easily flooded. 115 25.56
The roads have plenty of potholes. 55 12.22
The roads are always flooded. 41 9.11

This also implies that the respondents indicate that the implementation of the

road widening projects is not a necessity since this indicator is topped of the list. The

widths of their roads in their community are already capable of handling the

movement of the vehicles passing through their locality.

The indicator on “the roads are made up of concrete” landed in second place

in the above table according to 304 or 67.56% of the respondents. This implies that the

budget for the road widening project will not be as expensive as those whose roads are

rugged or asphalted since the main road is already constructed using concrete material.

41
Further, the results also showed that majority of the roads in the 2nd Engineering

District of Pangasinan are already made up of cement or concrete.

Third on the list on the status of road conditions is “roads are poorly painted”

according to 62% or 279 of the 450 respondents. This implies that the roads in some

areas of the 2nd Pangasinan Engineering have not yet been properly painted and yet the

roads are already being widened. The essential purpose of road markings is to guide

and control traffic on a highway. They supplement the function of traffic signs. The

markings serve as a psychological barrier and signify the delineation of traffic path

and its lateral clearance from traffic hazards for the safe movement of traffic. Hence

they are very important to ensure the safe, smooth and harmonious flow of traffic.

(https://nptel.ac.in/courses/105101087/downloads/Lec-37.pdf)

“The roads are well constructed, fine and no potholes” is the next indicator on

the list. This was mentioned by 235 or 52.22% of the respondents of this study. This

implies that there was no need for their roads to be repaired prior to the road widening

project as it has already met the standard requirement of concrete roads covered with

asphalt for protection.

Next on the list of indicators is “the roads in our area are too narrow” as

stated by less than 50% of the respondents (47.33%). This is a strong justification for

the need of the road widening project of the DPWH since narrow roads cause traffic or

the slow movement of vehicles.

42
 “There are cracks on the road” follows next according to 181 or 40.22% of the

450 respondents. The implication is that since there are cracks on the road, it is not

safe for vehicles to be moving fast as this causes damage to the wheels and to its

alignment. Further, this also causes traffic congestion especially in roads where trucks

often traverse. Normally, the 10-wheeler trucks cause the cracking of the roads due to

their heavy loads.

The next indicator on the rank list states that “there are roads that are not

completely filled with concrete or asphalts” with 147 or 32.67% of the respondents.

This reflects that there are portions of the road that are not completely finished. In

most instances, the filling of concrete and asphalt is done in roads with cracks.

“The roads are made of rough materials like gravel” was chosen by 121 or

26.89% of the respondents while “the roads are easily flooded” garnered 115

responses from the 450 respondents. This gives the impression that since the roads are

easily flooded is because of the kind of material used to construct the road. Hence, this

supports the need for a road widening project in order to stabilize the condition of the

roads in the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan.

Bottom two (2) on the rank list of road condition before the road widening

project states that “The roads have plenty of potholes” with 12.22% while “The roads

are always flooded” had 9.11%. The two indicators again are interrelated with each

other in the sense that since the roads have plenty of potholes, hence during rainy

43
season, it is always flooded. Therefore, the road widening project could be an avenue

to repair the main roads.

Status of the Roads After the Road

Widening Project in Terms of:

A. Appearance

Table II below shows the responses of the 450 residents of the different

localities covered by the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan relative to the

appearance of the roads after the implementation of the road widening project.

Table II

APPEARANCE OF THE ROADS

AFTER THE ROAD WIDENING PROJECT
n – 450

INDICATOR f %
The roads are wider than before 419 93.11
The roads are smoother and finer. 360 80.00
The roads are not flooded anymore. 348 77.33
The roads were elevated higher than the
347 77.11
sidewalk.
There was no change in the appearance of
31 6.89
our roads.

The table revealed the perception of the respondents on the appearance of the

roads in their locality after the road widening project was constructed. 419 or 93.11%

of the respondents said that “the roads are wider than before”; 360 or 80% of them

44
said that “the roads are smoother and finer”; 348 respondents or 77.33% claimed that

“the roads are not flooded anymore”; 347 or 77.11% of the 450 respondents agreed

that “the roads were elevated higher than the sidewalk” while 31 or 6.89 % declared

that “there was no change in the appearance of the roads”.

The above results imply that the respondents appreciate the road widening

project. Further, the road widening project seems to benefit the communities that were

serviced by the road as seen by the figures above.

Local road investments work for growth and poverty reduction in local areas.

An empirical study finds that investing in road improvements and the construction of

high quality roads at the regional (local) level, particularly in provinces,

municipalities, and barangays could be more beneficial to the region than investments

in the national road network alone. The integration of peripheral areas with the rapidly

growing urban nodes such as San Fernando City (Pampanga), Cabanatuan City

(Nueva Ecija), Metro Cebu, Metro Iloilo, Davao, and General Santos cities, among

others, fundamentally depends on an efficient road network. The link provides rural

economic agents with access to urban markets, technologies, and modern inputs.

(https://dirp3.pids.gov.ph/ris/dps/pidsdps1138.pdf)

B. Materials Used

Table III below shows the status of the roads after the road widening project in

terms of the materials used.

45
 Table III

STATUS OF THE ROADS AFTER THE ROAD WIDENING PROJECT

IN TERMS OF THE MATERIALS USED
n = 450

INDICATOR f %
The roads are changed from rough to
274 60.89
concrete.
The roads are changed from concrete to
261 58.00
asphalt.
The roads are changed from asphalt to
129 28.67
concrete.
The roads are changed from rough to
116 25.78
asphalt.
The roads remain the same 74 16.44

The table shows that 274 or 60.89% of the respondents stated that after the

road widening project, “the roads are changed from rough to concrete”. Not far

behind was the claim of the 261 or 58% of the respondents that “the roads are

changed from concrete to asphalt”. Further, 129 respondents or 28.67% said that “the

roads are changed from asphalt to concrete” as 116 or 25.78% of the respondents

mentioned that “the roads are changed from rough to asphalt”. Lastly, 74 or 16.44%

of the 450 respondents declared that “the roads remain the same”.

The data in the above table reflects that there was an impact of the road

widening project on the condition of the roads in the different localities covering the

2nd Pangasinan Engineering District more specifically on the materials used. From a

rough road before the implementation of the project into a concrete road after the road

widening is quite a big achievement for DPWH as it is a way of facilitating the fast

46
transport of goods and services from community to community. Nonetheless, there

were still respondents who made a statement that the roads in their locality did not

change at all after the road widening project was implemented. This is due to the fact

that the road widening projects did not improve the flow of traffic in their area.

Roads respond to the demand from people and bring benefits in terms of

improved economic opportunities and social welfare. These benefits include access to

markets, jobs, health and education. Improved roads contribute to reducing transport

costs for freight and passengers. In delivering these benefits, however, both negative

and positive environmental and sociocultural impacts may arise. Measures must,

therefore, be taken to reduce the short-term negative impact and to ameliorate and

manage the long-term consequences.

With good planning and management, the environmental and socio-cultural

negative impacts of road rehabilitation and maintenance can be limited and will

generally be outweighed by the positive benefits of reduced noise, accidents and

traffic congestion, and increased employment. New road construction, road widening

or major realignment can, however, have more significant impacts. When roads

penetrate undisturbed country or are built in densely populated areas, the long-term

consequences can be profound and more damaging than those during construction.

There is a range of potential environmental and sociocultural impacts. Rarely do

all aspects occur together, but some will during road construction and maintenance.

Therefore, it is important to be aware of these potential impacts and their

47
consequences.

(http://ec.europa.eu/development/body/theme/transport/guidelines/en/en36.htm)

C. Necessity of the Road Widening Project

Table IV shows the necessity of the road widening project as perceived by the

respondents from the different localities covering the area of the 2nd Engineering

District of Pangasinan.

Table IV

NECESSITY OF THE ROAD WIDENING PROJECT

n = 450

INDICATOR f %
The road widening project helps ease the flow of traffic in our
422 93.78
area.
The road widening project is needed to transport goods and
396 88.00
services to the town market or business district.
The road widening project is needed to reduce travel time of
375 83.33
motorists.
The road widening project in our area is only a waste of
82 18.22
taxpayer's money.
The road widening project is not needed because there is no
74 16.44
traffic problem in our place.

On the necessity of the road widening project as perceived by the respondents,

422 or 93.78% of them implied that “the road widening project helps ease the flow of

traffic in our area”. Second on the rank list was the indicator on “the road widening

project is needed to transport goods and services to the town market or business

48
district” according to 396 or 88% of the 450 respondents. Further, 375 respondents or

83.33% claimed that “the road widening project is needed to reduce the travel time of

motorists” while 82 respondents of a mere 18.22% mentioned that “the road widening

project in our area is only a waste of taxpayer’s money”. And lastly, 74 respondents or

16.44% stated that “the road widening project is not needed because there is no traffic

problem in our place”.

The above data reflects the convenience that was brought by the road widening

project to the residents of the local communities covered by the 2nd Pangasinan

Engineering District. The said project was also valued by majority of the respondents

particularly in transport of good and in the comfort of reduction of time travel

especially in the highly urbanized cities and municipalities of Pangasinan.

Still, there were some respondents who clamored that the road widening

project is not needed in their area because of the absence of a traffic problem. These

respondents are probably located in the localities where vehicles are not often passing

their area, thus are considered as secondary roads.

The negative impacts largely occur during construction and may be avoided or

substantially reduced by tackling the issues early on. The issues can be highlighted in

early consultation with communities likely to be affected by road development.

Together with suitable design techniques, this will help reduce the negative impacts

and to establish mechanisms for dealing with the long-term problems.

49
 The roads agency must also develop skills for creating appropriate

environmental regulations and sociocultural standards. They need to be able to

incorporate these regulations and standards in design and construction. For example,

contractors need guidance on additional health facilities with specific measures for

HIV/AIDS awareness creation and prevention. The environmental impact by road

users, especially trucks, needs to be monitored and environmental and sociocultural

issues pursued once the project is completed.

http://ec.europa.eu/development/body/theme/transport/guidelines/en/en36.htm

Utilization of the Road Widening Area Project

The table below shows the respondents perception and observation on how the

road widening projects in the 2nd Pangasinan Engineering District are being utilized by

the community.

It can be noted that according to 286 or 63.56% responses, the road widening area is

being used for drying up palay and/or corn. 283 respondents or 62.89% said that the

road widening area is being used by vendors to display their goods; 278 or 61.78% of

them stated that the road widening area is used as sidewalk by pedestrians; 267 or

59.33% claimed that these areas are used to overtake slow moving vehicles traversing

the main road; 247 or 54.89% of the respondents mentioned that the road widening

area are used as bicycle lanes. 246 or 54.67 percent of the 450 respondents further

stated that the road widening area is used by funeral parlors to parade the dead going

50
to church/cemetery; 242 or 53.78% of the respondents revealed that the road widening

area is being used as parking area for vehicles being repaired by auto repair shops; as

217 respondents or 48.22% divulged that these areas are used by slow-moving

vehicles.

Table V

RESPONDENTS’ PERCEPTION ON THE UTILIZATION

OF THE ROAD WIDENING AREA
n = 450

INDICATOR f %
For drying up palay and/or corn. 286 63.56
Used by vendors to display their goods. 283 62.89
As sidewalk by pedestrians 278 61.78
To overtake slow moving vehicles traversing the main road. 267 59.33
As bicycle lane 247 54.89
Used by funeral parlors to parade the dead going to
246 54.67
church/cemetery
For parking area of vehicles being repaired by auto repair
242 53.78
shops.
As area for slow-moving vehicles 217 48.22
As motorcycle lane 185 41.11
Exclusively by business establishments as parking space
174 38.67
for their customers.
As tricycle lane 171 38.00
For drying up clothes 68 15.11

Also, 185 or 41.11% of the 450 respondents disclosed that the road widening

area is being used as motorcycle lane; 174 or 38.67% of the respondents claimed that

51
these areas are exclusively used by business establishments as parking space for their

customers; 171 respondents identified these areas as tricycle lanes, while 68 or

15.11% said that the road widening area is used for drying up clothes.

Among the indicators mentioned above, less than 50% or specifically 48.22%

identified the correct and appropriate use of the road widening area which is an area

for slow-moving vehicles so as not to cause any traffic in the main roads. Oftentimes,

it is difficult for slow-moving vehicles to traverse the road widening area because of

so many barriers and obstacles like the palay or corn being dried up in the extended

road which causes road accidents.

Most of the indicators mentioned in the table are obstructions to the right-of-

way and the government particularly the DPWH and the local officials have the

authority of removing these obstructions as stipulated in the Memorandum No. 73 s.

2014 issued by the Department of Public Works and Highways. The observation of the

researcher and the respondents as well, is that such clearing operations are not being

performed by the government officials even at the barangay level thus leading to

traffic problems and vehicular accidents.

Of the 12 indicators, only two (2) of them are legally allowed as utilization of

the road widening area, that is to overtake slow moving vehicles traversing the main

road and be used as an area for slow-moving vehicles. The remaining 10 indicators are

considered as obstructions to the right-of-way and must be subject to clearing

operations by the local government.

52
 Chapter 4

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter presents the summary of findings that addressed the problems of

the study, conclusion drawn, and the recommendations offered based on the findings

of the study.

Summary

This study was conducted to assess the state of the road before and after the

road widening projects in the 2nd Engineering District in the Province of Pangasinan.

The study utilized the descriptive survey research to determine the status of the

main roads before the implementation of the road widening project of the DPWH in

Pangasinan and after the road widening project including the utilization of the road

widening projects of the Department of Public Works and Highways.

The respondents of this study were the residents of the municipalities and cities

covered by the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan selected by purposive sampling

with a total of 450 respondents.

Further, it sought answers to the following questions:

1. What is the status of the previous road conditions before the implementation of

the road widening at the 2nd Engineering District of Pangasinan?

53
 Based on results of the study presented in Chapter 3, more than 50% of

the respondents who are residents of the 2nd Pangasinan Engineering District

claimed that the roads in their area are wide enough for vehicles to pass-by,

their roads are made up of concrete, the roads are poorly painted and the roads

are well-constructed, fine and has no potholes.

2. What is the present status of the road widening projects 2nd Engineering

District of Pangasinan in terms of:

a. Appearance

In terms of appearance, topping the list of indicators according

to the respondents is that the roads are wider than before. But there

were some respondents who admitted that there was no change in the

appearance of their roads.

b. Materials Used

In terms of materials used, the respondents mentioned that the

roads were changed from rough to concrete while there were

respondents who also confirmed that the roads in their locality

remained the same.

c. Necessity of the road

In terms of necessity of the road, a high majority of the

respondents expressed that the road widening project helped ease the

flow of traffic in their area. Nonetheless, there were quite a few who

54
 declared that the road widening is not needed because they have no

traffic problem in their place.

3. How are the road widening projects utilized as perceived by the residents?

Topping the list of indicators according to the respondents on the

utilization of the road widening project is by drying up palay and/or corn

followed by being used by vendors to display their goods.

Conclusion

Based on the results of the study, the following conclusions are hereby derived:

a. The road widening project is used by the residents for drying up their palay

and/or corn and not as an avenue for slow-moving vehicles to ease traffic

congestion, hence hypothesis is NOT ACCEPTED; and

b. The public is not aware of the proper utilization of the road widening projects

hence, the hypothesis is NOT ACCEPTED.

Recommendations

Based on the findings and conclusions of this study, the following are hereby

recommended:

1. The researcher would like to strongly encourage the local government officials

to strictly enforce and implement DPWH Department Order No. 73 s. 2014

55
 which deals with the conduct of clearing operations against obstruction in the

right-of-way.

2. The Department of Public Works and Highways should conduct Information

Dissemination Campaign on the provisions and restrictions of having

obstructions in right-of-way and in the proper utilization of roads and road

widening projects.

3. A separate division or section in the LGU similar to be Metro Manila

Development Authority (MMDA) can be formed in the local government units

who will be tasked to monitor and implement the proper utilization of the road

widening projects and to call attention or reprimand those who violate or

obstruct these roads which could endanger the lives of the motorists.

4. Barangay officials are advised to prevent their community residents from

putting obstructions or exclusively owning and using the front part of their

houses where the road widening project has traversed.

5. An assessment of the road conditions and the road widening projects be

regularly done by the Department of Public Works and Highways in order to

prevent man-made damages and cracks on the roads.

56
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

A. Books

Bateman, John H.
2010 Introduction to Highway Engineering. 5th edition. New York: John
Wiley and Sons, Inc.

Berg, Walter R.
2006 Education Research. New York: David McKay Company, Inc.

Calderon, Jose F. and Expectacion C. Gonzales

2011 Methods of Research and Thesis Writing. Manila: National Bookstore.

De Jesus, Moortgat, Buzar, Brawner, Salinas

Guidebook on Thesis Writing. Manila.

Downie, N.M. and R.W. Health

1983 Basic Statistical Methods. New York: Harper and Row Publishers.

Hass, Ralph and W. Ronald Hudson

2011 Pavement Management Systems. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc.

Japan Road Bureau

1993 Ministry of Construction. MICHI Roads in Japan. (Tokyo: Japan
Road Association)

Osborne, David and Ted Gaebler

1992 Reinventing Government. New York: Penguin Brooks, USA, Inc.

57
Oglesby, Clarkson H.
2012 Highway Engineering. 3rd Edition. New York: John Wiley and Sons,
Inc.

Nolledo, Jose N.
1991 The 1991 Local Government Code with Basic Features. Manila:
National Bookstore, Inc.

Pagoso, Cristobal M. and Rizalina A. Montana

1993 Introductory Statistics. Manila: Rex Bookstore.

Sevilla, Consuelo G. et al
1992 Research Methods. Revised Edition. Manila: Rex Bookstore

B. Unpublished Materials

Arellano, Oscar Z. Road Maintenance By Contract. Civil Engineering. The Official

Journal of the Philippine Institute of Civil Engineering. November 1992

Baldos, Gervasio T.
1996 An Appraisal of the Implementation of the Maintenance By Contract
on the National Road Program in Southern Leyte Engineering
District: Proposals for Upgrading.

Clell, Harral. Ernesto Henroid

2010 “Highway Maintenance By Contract: An Appraisal”. National
Development Asia, The Infrastructure Journal.

Department of Public Works and Highways Bureau of Research and Standards.

Road Maintenance and Repair. (Manila: DPWH 1991)

Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund-Special Economic Assistance for Project

Sustainability (OECF-SAPS Team) on Philippine Road Projects. Executive
Summary of Recommendations and Action Plans. OECF and DPWH (Manila: 1994)

58
Appendix A

SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

Dear Respondent,

The undersigned is currently undergoing a Thesis entitled “Utilization of Road

Widening Projects in the Province of Pangasinan” as part of his requirements for the
degree of Master in Public Administration. Please answer the following questions
keeping in mind only the Main National Roads and Highways in Pangasinan. Rest
assured that your responses shall be kept at utmost confidentiality.

Thank you.

MR. PAUL MAGLIBA

Researcher
PART I: RESPONDENT’S PROFILE

Name: (Optional) ___________________________________________________

Municipality/City you live in: _____________________________________________

A. Please answer on the list below the situation or appearance of the roads in
your locality/area before the road widening project of DPWH. Check as
many as applicable

 The roads is our area are too narrow

 The roads in our area are wide enough for vehicles
 The roads are made of rough materials like gravel.
 The roads are made up of concrete
 The roads are always flooded
 The roads are easily flooded
 The roads have plenty of potholes
 There are roads that are not completely filled with concretes or
asphalt

59
  There are cracks on the road
 Roads are poorly painted
 The roads are well constructed fine and no potholes.

B. Please check the status of the roads in your locality after the road
widening project.

a. Appearance
1. The roads are wider than before YES NO
2. The roads are not flooded anymore. YES NO
3. The roads were elevated higher than the sidewalk YES NO
4. The roads are smoother and finer YES NO
5. There was no change in the appearance of our roads YES NO

b. Materials used
1. The roads remain the same YES NO
2. The roads are changed from rough to concrete YES NO
3. The roads are changed from rough to asphalt YES NO
4. The roads are changed from Asphalt to concrete YES NO
5. The roads are changed from concrete to asphalt YES NO

c. Necessity of the road widening project

1. The road widening project is needed to reduce travel
Of motorists. YES NO
2. The road widening project is needed to transport
Goods and services to the town market or business
district YES NO
3. The road widening project is not needed because
There is no traffic Problem in our place YES NO
4. The road widening project helps ease the flow of traffic
In our area YES NO
5. The road widening project in our area is only a waste
Of Taxpayer’s money. YES NO

60
3. Please check the utilization of the road widening projects in your area or
locality. Check as many as applicable.

The road widening project is used:

_____As area for slow-moving vehicles

_____To overtake slow moving vehicles traversing the main road

_____For drying up palay and/ or corn

_____For parking area of autorepair shops

_____Exclusively by business establishments as parking space for their

customers

_____As bicycle lane

_____As motorcycle lane

_____As tricycle lane

_____For drying up clothes

_____By vendors to display their goods

_____By funeral parlors to parade the dead going to church/cemetery

_____As sidewalk by pedestrians

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION

61
Appendix B

[REPUBLIC ACT NO. 917]

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR AN EFFECTIVE HIGHWAY

ADMINISTRATION, MODIFY APPORTIONMENT OF HIGHWAY FUNDS
AND GIVE AID TO THE PROVINCES, CHARTERED CITIES AND
MUNICIPALITIES IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF ROADS AND STREETS,
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in

Congress assembled:

ARTICLE I.—Title and Scope of Act

SECTION 1. Short title.—This Act may be cited as the “Philippine Highway Act of
nineteen hundred and fifty-three.”

SEC. 2. Scope of Act.—The provisions of this Act shall control the disposition of all
funds accruing to the Highway Special Fund; the disposition of general funds when so
provided by law; the manner of apportionment and conditions under which such
apportionment shall be released; the selection and designation of highways or highway
projects to receive national aid; the administration, maintenance, improvement,
reconstruction and construction expenditures on highway projects; the classification of
highways; and the widths, acquisition and use of rights-of-way.

ARTICLE II.—Definitions

SEC. 3. Words and phrases defined.—When used in this Act and in subsequent Acts
having reference thereto, unless the context indicates otherwise:

(a) The term “highway” includes rights-of-way, bridges, ferries, drainage structures,
signs, guard rails, and protective structures in connection with highways.

(b) The term “Division of Highways” means the division of the Bureau of Public
Works that has charge of the administration of highways, and includes any regional

62
provincial or city department, regional engineering division, section, engineering
district, or office suitably equipped and organized or official having adequate powers
to discharge the duties herein required.

(c) The term “maintenance” means the constant making of needed repairs to preserve a
smooth-surfaced highway, and operation of existing ferries, but shall not be held to
include extraordinary repairs nor reconstruction.

(d) The term “construction” means the supervising, inspecting, actual building, and all
expenses, including the costs of right-of-way, incidental to construction of a highway,
except locating, surveying and mapping.

(e) The term “reconstruction” means a widening or a rebuilding of a highway or any

portion thereof to make it a continuous road of sufficient width and strength to care
adequately for traffic needs.

(f) The term “improvement” means any repair of a highway or any portion thereof that
results in its betterment by virtue of the use of materials of a quality superior to those
repaired or the employment of more skillful workmanship involving expenditure of
money in excess of the normal cost of ordinary reconditioning or replacement.

(g) The term “local funds” include funds raised under the authority of a province,
chartered city, or municipality; allotments or internal revenue accruing by law to their
general funds and the “road bridge” funds; and other revenues accruing to their
general funds and made available by resolution of the Board or Council concerned for
expenditure under the control of the Division of Highways, but does not include
apportionments or allotments from the Highway Special Fund.

(h) The term “primary roads” means roads which form parts of the main trunk-line
system continuous in extent; roads which are now declared national roads except those
not forming parts of the continuous system, such as roads leading to national airports,
seaports and parks, etc., or coast-to-coast roads not forming continuous part of the
trunk-line system.

63
(i) The term “secondary roads” shall include all access roads, national, provincial and
city roads and streets forming the secondary trunk-line system not classified as
“primary roads,” but shall exclude “feeder roads.”

(j) The term “vehicle-kilometer” means the unit measure of road use expressed by the
product of the actual number of motor vehicles passing thru a given section of a road
in a specified unit of time multiplied by the length of the section in kilometers.
“Vehicle-kilometerage” is the sum total of the vehicle-kilometers computed for a
given highway system, and for the purpose of this Act shall be the sum of all the
products of the inferred annual average twenty-four hours traffic count multiplied by
the respective lengths in kilometers of the control sections where the traffic counts had
been actually and periodically observed.

(k) The “right-of-way” means the land secured and reserved to the public for highway
purposes.

ARTICLE III.—Disposition of Highway Revenue

SEC. 4. Amendment to Commonwealth Act Numbered Four hundred and sixty-six.—

Section three hundred and sixty-one of Commonwealth Act Numbered Four hundred
and sixty-six, as amended by section one of Republic Act Numbered Three hundred
and fourteen, is amended to read:

“SEC. 361. Disposition of proceeds of taxes on motor fuel.—The proceeds of the tax
on motor fuel prescribed in subsections (b), (c), and (d) of section one hundred and
forty-two of this Code shall be deposited in a special trust account in the National
Treasury to constitute the Highway Special Fund, which shall be apportioned and
expended in accordance with the provisions of the Philippine Highway Act of nineteen
hundred and fifty-three.

SEC. 5. Amendment to Act Numbered Three thousand nine hundred and ninety-
two.—Section seventy-three of Act Numbered Three thousand nine hundred and
ninety-two, as amended by section two of Republic Act Numbered Three hundred and
fourteen, is amended to read:

64
“SEC. 73. Disposal of moneys collected.—Moneys collected under the provisions of
this Act shall be deposited in a special trust account in the National Treasury to
constitute the Highway Special Fund, which shall be apportioned and expended in
accordance with the provisions of the Philippine Highway Act of nineteen hundred
and fifty-three.

SEC. 6. Deductions for administrative expenses, highway equipment, and contingent

emergency expenditures.—

(a) Administrative expenses.—So much as may be required but not to exceed three per
centum of all moneys accruing to the Highway Special Fund, or such as may hereafter
be appropriated for expenditure under the provisions of this Act, shall be deducted
from the Highway Special Fund and made available until expended, for administering
the provisions of this Act as the Secretary of Public Works and Communications may
deem necessary, including expenditures for sundry expenses, salaries and wages of the
necessary personnel of the Division of Highways, in-service training programs, and
for carrying on the necessary highway research, fiscal and cost accounting, statistical
and investigational studies independently or in cooperation with other fiscal and
research agencies, and for publishing results thereof.

(b) Highway equipment, machineries, etc.—So much as may be needed but not to
exceed two and a half million pesos upon the passage of this Act, and so much as may
be required for each fiscal year thereafter, but not to exceed one per cent of the
Highway Special Fund, shall be set aside from the said Fund and made available and
expended for the purchase of highway equipment, machinery, laboratory and testing
material, equipment, motor vehicles ferries, and all needed and necessary accessories
and spare parts, and for the establishment and/or maintenance of the necessary repair
shops, motor pools, storage depots, laboratory, material testing and other highway
construction aids and facilities by the Division of Highways when ever deemed
necessary by the Director of Public Works and approved by the Secretary of Public
Works and Communications.

(c) Contingent emergency expenditures.—Six per centum of the Highway Special

Fund, shall be set aside and made available and expended in the discretion of the
Secretary of Public Works and Communications for the relief of provinces, chartered
cities and municipalities which have suffered unusually serious loss or damage or

65
destruction beyond their reasonable capacity to bear: Provided, That the sums so
authorized shall be expended for restoration, including relocation of roads and bridges
damaged or destroyed, in such manner as to give the largest measure of permanent
relief, under the rules and regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of Public
Works and Communications.

(d) Unexpended contingent fund.—In the event, however, that the sums corresponding
to the contingent emergency, fund provided in the preceding paragraph, or part
thereof, remain unexpended after the fiscal year during which it has been set aside, the
same shall be made available for the investigation, survey, and improvement of roads
in the National System at the discretion of the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications upon the recommendation of the Director of Public Works.

After making the deduction authorized by this section, the said Secretary shall
apportion the remainder of the Highway Special Fund among the different provinces,
chartered cities and municipalities in the manner provided for in the next article.

ARTICLE IV.—Apportionment

SEC. 7. Maintenance fund to be released separately and regularly.—Fifty per centum

of all apportionable sums in the Highway Special Fund shall be released separately
and as frequently as at least five million pesos are collected and/or accumulated in this
Fund, but not less oftener than every quarter irrespective of what amount has been
accumulated, for the maintenance of all existing and unabandoned roads, streets and
bridges to be distributed among the several provinces, chartered cities and
municipalities as provided in section nine of this Act. It shall be unlawful for any
fiscal officer to withhold, or cause the withholding of any moneys apportionable under
this section beyond the quarterly period, except for causes determined under paragraph
(b) of section nine of this act.

SEC. 8. Fund for improvement, reconstruction and construction.—The other fifty per
centum of said apportionable balances in the Highway Special Fund shall be
apportioned among the different provinces, chartered cities, and municipalities for
improvement, paving, reconstruction and wherever practicable for construction of
roads, streets, and bridges in the manner and under the conditions set forth in section
ten of this Act to be released by the Secretary of Public Works and Communications,

66
upon the recommendation of the Director of Public Works: Provided, That seventy-
five per centum of the sums shall be released during any year until the total number of
lineal meters of existing temporary timber bridges and other non-permanent stream-
crossing aids shall have been reduced to below twenty-five per cent of the total
number of lineal meters of bridges and other stream-crossing aids inventoried in the
Philippines.

SEC. 9. Apportionment of maintenance funds.—(a) Regular share.—The sums set

aside for maintenance of all existing and unabandoned roads, streets, and bridges shall
be distributed among the several provinces, chartered cities and municipalities as
follows:

Fifteen per centum to the municipalities to be apportioned in proportion to population

as provided in section twelve hereof.

Thirty per centum equally among the provinces and chartered cities.

Forty per centum to the provinces and chartered cities in the ratio which the combined
lengths of all existing unabandoned roads and streets in each province or city bear to
the combined existing unabandoned roads and streets in the Philippines as inventoried
by the Division of Highways and approved by the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications during the next previous year: Provided, That for the purposes of this
section only one-fourth of the lengths of concrete roads and one-half of those of high-
type bituminous asphalt roads shall be counted in proportioning the shares of the
different provinces, and chartered cities.

Fifteen per centum to the provinces and cities in proportion to the number of motor
vehicles registered in the province or city.

Except when otherwise provided in this Act, the Subprovinces of Benguet and Siquijor
of the Mountain Province and the Province of Oriental Negros, respectively, and all
chartered cities shall each be considered as a province for the purposes of this section.

(b) National aid for maintenance of provincial and city roads, streets and bridges.—
The national aid to be extended to any province or city for the maintenance of

67
provincial or city roads, streets and bridges, shall be deducted from the total regular
share apportioned to each province or city under this section. This sum shall be a
percentage of the share of the province or city equal to at least one-half of but not
more than the ratio which the combined length of provincial or city roads bears to the
total combined lengths of national, provincial and city roads in the province or city as
counted in the same manner as provided in paragraph (a) hereof. The remainder shall
be made available for expenditure for maintenance of national roads in said province
or city.

Within sixty days after the passage of this Act and periodically as may be required by
regulations to be promulgated by the Secretary of Public Works and Communications,
the provincial board or city council concerned shall designate the existing and
unabandoned provincial or city roads actually serving motor vehicular traffic upon
which this aid shall be expended and shall cause their respective district or city
engineers to prepare a maintenance program and estimates thereon. Upon approval of
the program and estimates by the Director of Public Works, the provincial board or
city council concerned shall provide in their annual road and bridge budget an
appropriation equal to one-half the total estimated maintenance requirement, to be
taken from local fund or road and bridge fund. This appropriation shall be certified by
the provincial or city treasurer concerned and made available for expenditures by the
Division of Highways. Upon receipt by the Director of Public Works of this certificate
of availability of local funds, he shall recommend to the Secretary of Public Works
and Communications the periodic release of the national aid provided in this section
which shall be applied to and cover the other half of the aforesaid total estimated
maintenance requirement.

Nod for maintenance of provincial or city roads shall be released by the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications in excess of the amount equal to that appropriated
by the provincial board or city council and in no case shall this amount be more than
half of the total estimated maintenance requirement, but when the province or city of
the estimated cost of maintenance as provided for in this Act, the entire share of the
province or city, or the balance thereof, shall be released on condition that the
Secretary of Finance shall certify as to the inability of such province or city at the end
of the fiscal year.

68
SEC. 10. Apportionment for improvement, reconstruction and construction.—(a)
Regular share.—The sum set aside in section eight of this Act for improvement,
reconstruction, paving, and, wherever practicable, for construction of roads, streets
and bridges shall be distributed as follows:

Sixty per centum to provinces and chartered cities in proportion to the potential area
(uncultivated and undeveloped) available for agricultural and industrial purposes
including commercial timber lands as shown by the latest census or data available in
the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and populated but isolated areas
that are served only by existing trails, bullcart-roads and that are unclassified roads, to
be distributed to provinces and cities.

Twenty per centum to provinces and chartered cities in the ratio which the vehicle-
kilometerage of the province or city bears to the total vehicle-kilometerage recorded in
the entire Philippine Highways System as computed from traffic-flow charts or maps
of the different provinces and cities based on the annual average daily traffic count
observed on all classes of national and on first and second-class provincial and city
roads according to the latest available data: Provided, That for the purposes of this
paragraph, two-thirds of the vehicle-kilometerage of roads or road sections already
paved with concrete and other high-type pavements shall be excluded in computing
the number of vehicle-kilometers used as basis of proportioning under this paragraph.

Fifteen per centum to provinces and chartered cities in proportion to the amount of
property assessments.

Five per centum to be distributed equally among all municipalities in the Philippines.

(b) Discretionary funds.—After allocating the regular share as provided in this section,
the remainder of the sum set aside in section eight of this Act shall be used by the
Secretary of Public Works and Communications to increase the regular share of any
province or city maintaining temporary timber bridges and other non-permanent
stream-crossing facilities exceeding in aggregate length one-half of one per centum of
the total lineal meters of such temporary structures still existing in the Philippine
Highway System as shown by the latest available inventory of highway facilities:
Provided, That the total of such discretionary-additional share of any province or city
shall not exceed thirty per centum of its regular share. The remainder shall be used at

69
the discretion of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications as further aid to
any province or city for the construction, reconstruction and improvement of any road
integrated into the national system and of any provincial or city road integrated into
the “national aid” system.

(c) The Secretary of Public Works and Communications may use the unexpended
contingent fund and the balance of the improvement fund to aid municipalities for the
improvement or construction of municipal roads provided that such municipalities
shall defray one-third of the cost of improvement of construction.

(d) National aid for improvement, reconstruction, paving and construction of

provincial and city roads.—The national aid to be extended to any province or city for
the improvement, reconstruction, paving and, wherever practicable, construction of
provincial or city roads, streets and bridges shall be taken from the combined regular
and discretionary-additional shares apportioned to each province or city under this
section. The Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall determine the
amount of such aid to provincial and city roads but shall not transfer any portion of the
share of the province or city under this section to any project outside such province or
city.

Within sixty days after the passage of this Act, and within thirty days after the close of
each fiscal year thereafter, the provincial board or city council concerned shall select,
designate and submit thru the Director of Public Works for approval by the Secretary
of Public Works and Communications a system of provincial or city “national aid”
highways not to exceed ten per centum of the total highway kilometerage of such
province or city as shown by the records of the Division of Highways at the time of
the passage of this Act.

The Director of Public Works shall likewise within sixty days after the passage of this
Act recommend to the Secretary of Public Works and Communications the primary
and secondary national roads that shall form the nucleus of an expanding primary and
secondary national and “national aid” systems of roads as planned in a physical
program to be prepared by the Division of Highways.

Upon this system of primary and secondary national and “national aid” provincial and
city highways all the regular and discretionary-additional shares apportioned to each

70
province or city under this section shall be expended, until otherwise modified as a
result of any action taken pursuant to article VIII of this Act.

In approving provincial or city projects to receive “national aid” under the provisions
of this section, the Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall give
preference to such projects as will expedite the completion of an adequate and
connected system of highways intertown in character and correlated to the primary
system to be financed wholly by the National Government. He shall have the authority
to approve in whole or in part the system as designated by the province or city, or to
require modifications or revisions thereto: Provided, That the province or city
concerned shall submit to him for his approval any proposed revisions of the
designated highways above provided, for: Provided, further, That the subsequent
modifications or revisions are not made oftener than once every three years and do not
affect more than twenty per centum of the total kilometerage already designated at a
time. No “national aid” shall be authorized by the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications under this section unless the provincial board or city council
concerned has adequately provided for the maintenance of existing and unabandoned
roads, streets and bridges as required under section nine paragraph (b) of this Act.

The Secretary of Public Works and Communications may approve projects submitted
by the province or city prior to this selection, designation and approval of the system
of “national aid” highways herein provided for if he may reasonably anticipate that
such projects will become a part of such system.

Wherever provisions have been made by any province or city for the adequate
maintenance of a system of “national aid” highways and there still remains a
substantial sum for improvement, reconstruction, paving and construction of roads in
their locals funds, the provincial board or city council concerned may apply to the
Secretary of Public Works and Communications for additional “national aid” for such
roads, streets or bridges as said board or city council may select. If the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications finds the projects feasible and there is a balance in
the share of the province or city under this section still available for such projects
equivalent to eighty per centum of the estimated cost of such projects, he may in his
discretion authorize the release thereof of the condition that the province or city
concerned put up the other twenty per centum of the cost of such projects from local
funds. The Secretary of Public Works and Communications may promulgate the

71
necessary rules and regulations to govern the release and expenditure of such
additional aid.

Nothing in this section or the preceding section shall be construed as prohibiting any
provincial or city government from maintaining or constructing any road projects,
outside of the “national aid” system herein created, if the province or city concerned
can independently assume the burden in financing the construction and maintenance of
the same.

(e) Aid for roads and for bridges to be constructed under the provisions of Act
Numbered Three thousand five hundred, as amended.—The Secretary of Public
Works and Communications may authorize the use of the sum available for
improvement, reconstruction and construction for the payment of sinking fund and
interest on loan that the province or city may be able to secure for the construction of
any bridge, or improvement, reconstruction or construction of any road section in the
“national aid” system, from any banking institution, or from the revolving fund for toll
bridges created under Act Numbered Three thousand five hundred, as amended in the
next section of this Act.

SEC. 11. Amendment to Act Numbered Three thousand five hundred.—All provisions
of Act Numbered Three thousand five hundred, as amended by Commonwealth Act
Numbered Two hundred and forty-one, to the contrary notwithstanding, the funds
appropriated therein shall be made available for construction of permanent bridges,
free of tolls, to replace any existing temporary wooden bridge on the national and
“national aid” highway systems: Provided, however, That the annual amortization
needed to recover the cost of construction of the bridge, plus interest at four per
centum per annum, shall be paid partly or wholly from the share of the province or
city, as the case may be, from the Highway Special Fund as provided in the next
preceding section.

The Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall promulgate the necessary
rules and regulations to carry out the purposes of this section: Provided, however, That
preference shall be given to the construction of small bridges, the cost of which can be
amortized within a short period: Provided, further, That the amortization period shall
not exceed twenty years.

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SEC. 12. Municipal roads.—Subject to such rules and regulations as the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications may prescribe, the municipal council shall
designate the municipal roads on which the share of the municipalities from the
Highway Special Fund apportioned under section nine, paragraph (a), of this Act shall
be expended. The municipal council concerned shall formulate a program of work,
inventory of municipal roads on which the money is to be expended, and such work
progress reports to show that the money is being well spent and used for no other
purpose than the maintenance of existing and unabandoned roads, or, in the case of
island and interior municipalities where there are no existing roads, on existing trails
the location of which has been previously approved by him. The Secretary shall have
the authority to withhold any aid for municipal roads if he finds the same being
misused or wasted.

SEC. 13. Publication.—Within one year after this Act take effect, the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications shall prepare, publish and distribute a map
showing the highways that have been selected and approved as SEC. 13.
Publication.—Within one year after this Act take effect, the Secretary of Public Works
and Communications shall prepare, publish and distribute a map showing the
highways that have been selected and approved as a part of the primary and “national
aid” systems, and every year thereafter, he shall prepare, publish and distribute such
an up-to-date map.

ARTICLE V.—Improvement, Reconstruction, Paving and Construction of

“National Aid” Highways

SEC. 14. Supervision and control of “national aid” highway projects.—The

improvement, reconstruction, paving and construction of “national aid” highways or
parts of highways in the “national aid” systems under the provisions of this Act, and
all contracts, plans, specifications and estimates relating thereto, shall be undertaken
by the Division of Highways of the Bureau of Public Works subject to the approval of
the Secretary of Public Works and Communications: Provided, That where the cost of
any single project exceeds ten thousand pesos the work shall, after due public bidding,
be awarded by contract.

SEC. 15. Types of surface, widths of roadway and rights-of-way.—Only such durable
types of surface and kinds of materials shall be adopted for the construction and

73
reconstruction of any highways which is a part of the primary national or “national
aid” systems as will adequately meet the existing and probable future traffic needs and
conditions thereon. The Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall approve
the types and widths of construction and reconstruction, and the character of
improvement, repair and maintenance in each case, consideration being given to the
type and character which shall be best suited for each locality and to the probable
character and extent of the future traffic. All highways constructed or reconstructed
under the provisions of this Act shall be free from tolls of all kinds.

All highways in the “national aid” system to be improved, paved, reconstructed or

constructed after the passage of this Act shall have a right-of-way of ample width and
wearing surface of an adequate width which shall not be less than the minimum
standards now established by the Division of Highways of the Bureau of Public
Works, unless, in the opinion of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications,
such is impracticable by reason of physical conditions, excessive costs, probable
traffic requirements or legal obstacles.

SEC. 16. Engineering.—The cost of engineering which shall include surveys,

preparation of plans, specifications and estimates, inspection and unforeseen
contingencies shall not exceed ten per centum of the total estimated cost of
construction.

ARTICLE VI.—Organization and Personnel Policies

SEC. 17. Organization.—The functions of the different positions created under

Executive Order Numbered Three hundred and ninety-two, compensations for which
are chargeable against the Highway Special Fund, shall conform to Administrative
Order Numbered One, series of nineteen hundred and fifty-one, of the Bureau of
Public Works issued pursuant to the aforesaid Executive Order.

SEC. 18. Appointment and transfer of personnel.—The Secretary of Public Works and
Communications shall appoint upon recommendation of the Director of Public Works,
the personnel who shall occupy all the several positions created pursuant to the
aforesaid Executive Order and which may hereafter be created or transferred from
other divisions under the Department of Public Works and Communications, and
made functional part of the Division of Highways when compensation therefore are

74
payable from the Highway Special Fund. In filling such positions, the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications, upon the recommendation of the Director of
Public of Works, shall give preference to personnel who already occupy permanent
positions in the Department of Public Works and Communications and the selection
shall be based on training, experience and length of service. Such authority to appoint
personnel whose salary is payable under this Act, by the Secretary of Public Works
and Communications shall also extend to the appointment of the District Engineers,
assistant district highway or civil engineers not to exceed two in each district office
and the chief clerk or highway clerk whose salaries shall hereafter be made payable
from Highway Special Fund: Provided, That all other subordinate positions
established in the Division of Highways below Grade Seven, as described in section
three of Commonwealth Act Numbered Four hundred and two, as amended, shall be
appointed in accordance with existing law. Such additional personnel, payable under
this Act, as are required from time to time to fill positions in the specialized services
established to carry out the provisions of this Act shall be appointed by the Secretary
of Public Works and Communications, upon the recommendation of the Director of
Public Works, from lists of eligibles furnished by the Bureau of Civil Service in
accordance with law: Provided, That personnel of the Division of Highways of
whatever grade, enjoying permanent status as of the effective date of this Act, shall be
continued in their present or equivalent position or positions, and shall suffer no
impairment of civil service privileges or rights provided under the law, nor shall there
be any diminution of salary by reason of transfer to other position or positions as a
result of any action taken pursuant to the provisions of this Act, or the aforesaid
Executive Order. The assignment and/or transfer of professional or technical personnel
may be made for the best interests of the service by the Director of Public Works, with
the approval of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications.

SEC. 19. Personnel policies.—The Secretary of Public Works and Communications,

upon the recommendation of the Director of Public Works, is hereby directed to
formulate policies of personnel management calculated to encourage and develop the
loyal and efficient performance of duty on the part of all employees of the Division of
Highways. Such policies shall include provisions for within-service promotions,
periodic and systematic pay increases, rotation of personnel to broaden technical and
professional experience, the establishment of in-service training programs, and such
other means as the Director of Public Works deems advisable: Provided, That in
rotating personnel, no field, district or regional employee above the rank of foreman

75
shall, except for cause, be rotated oftener than once every two years not allowed in any
assignment longer than six years.

ARTICLE VII.—Budget and Accounts

SEC. 20. Operation funds.—A budget covering the operation of the Division of
Highways shall be prepared annually as prescribed in section seven, general
provisions, paragraph four of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two hundred and forty-
six, as amended. Such budget shall be prepared at the beginning of each fiscal year for
the next succeeding fiscal year by the Director of Public Works. Upon approval by the
Secretary of Public Works and Communications, said budget shall be submitted to the
President for his approval as required by law.

SEC. 21. Maintenance funds.—The provisions of Commonwealth Act Numbered Two

hundred and forty-six, as amended, to the contrary notwithstanding, sums apportioned
for maintenance under this Act shall be released automatically and made immediately
available for expenditure as provided in sections six (c), seven and nine of this Act
without the necessity of submitting a budget therefore as a condition precedent to their
release. A budgetary statement as to the amounts released to the different provinces,
cities and municipalities shall, however, be submitted to the President if he shall
require the same.

SEC. 22. Other expenditures.—A budget for all other sums to be expended under this
Act shall be prepared by the Director of Public Works pursuant to Commonwealth Act
Numbered Two hundred and forty-six. Budget programs for construction,
reconstruction, paving or improvement, shall set up anticipated highway funds
apportionable under section six (b) and section ten of this Act, against contractual and
other obligations to be met out of the anticipated collections covering into the
Highway Special Fund for a period in advance not longer than twenty-four months.
Such program shall include, in the case of projects to be prosecuted on force-accounts,
statements of traveling and other expenses, including a list of employees entitled
thereto; proposed expenditures of materials, rental charges for/or purchase of highway
equipment, machineries, accessories and spare parts, labor, the cost of acquisition of
right-of-way, and the cost of engineering as defined in section sixteen of this Act.
Upon approval of the Secretary of Public Works and Communications, said budget
shall be submitted to the President for his final approval as required by law.

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SEC. 23. Accounts.—The provisions of Republic Act Numbered Four hundred and
thirty-three to the contrary notwithstanding, the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications is authorized to establish an accounting section in the Division of
Highways of the Bureau of Public Works which shall devise and install a proper
method of keeping accounts suitable to a modern highway administration. Such
section shall cooperate with the Budget Commission and General Auditing Office in
fiscal accounting, but shall work independently of these offices in so far as cost
accounting, statistical compilation and analyses thereof for purposes of engineering
are concerned. The personnel for this section shall be paid under section six of this
Act, and the necessary positions therefore shall be provided in the plantilla of the
Division of Highways to be included in the Annual Budget for the operation of said
Division.

SEC. 24. Equipment account.—There shall be established a highway equipment

account which shall comprise allotments thereto from the Highway Special Fund,
proceeds from the sales of obsolete or wornout highway equipment, machinery and
motor vehicles used by the Division of Highways, rentals for use such highway
equipment and machinery and all other moneys used or to be used in the purchase of
such highway equipment, machinery or motor vehicles. This account shall be used for
the purchase of all highway equipment, machinery, motor vehicles, all needed and
necessary tools and spare parts, and for the establishment, in the discretion of the
Director of Public Works, with the approval of the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications, of necessary repair shops, facilities and storage depots. This account
shall also be used for the purchase of equipment required by the materials testing
laboratory, and for the purchase of other items and equipment materials not heretofore
specified, as may be needed for the proper carrying out of the provisions of this Act.
The Director of Public Works shall require the establishment of a system for the
proper control and maintenance of all highway equipment, machinery, motor vehicles,
and all other equipment and property used or owned by the Division of Highways, and
for the prorating equitably of the costs of depreciation of such highway equipment,
machinery, motor vehicles and all other items of equipment, among the several
highway construction and maintenance operations and other assigned uses. The costs
of repair, maintenance and operation, as nearly as may be, shall be charged to projects
or otherwise prorated where project use is not involved. The accumulated depreciation
charges shall be credited to the highway equipment account and used as provided
therefore. Under such regulations as the Director of Public Works may prescribe, the

77
chief highway engineer shall exercise complete control over the assignment, use and
transfer of all highway equipment, machinery, motor vehicles, and all other equipment
and properly owned by or placed under the control of the Division of Highways.
Notwithstanding other provisions of law, executive order, or regulation to the
contrary, such war surplus equipment as may have been transferred to the Division of
Highways by the Surplus Property Commission on memorandum receipt or otherwise
tendered is hereby declared to be the property of the Division of Highways and as such
shall be subject to such use, control and assignment as hereinbefore specified and
provided.

SEC. 25. In the purchase of materials for the maintenance, reconstruction, paving and
improvement of national, provincial, city or municipal roads and bridges under this
Act, preference shall be given as far as practicable to locally produced materials,
provided that the quality and price thereof shall not differ considerably from the
quality and price of imported materials, and the supply of local materials is adequate.

ARTICLE VIII.—Establishment of an Integrated System of Highways

SEC. 26. Revision of classification of roads established by Executive Order Numbered

Four hundred and eighty-three, series of nineteen hundred and fifty-one.—Within one
year after the passage of this Act, the Secretary of Public Works and Communications
shall cause the review of existing data and surveys and, upon completion of this
review, the preparation by the Division of Highways of the Bureau of Public Works of
such development maps or master plans as would embody in each original group of
provinces or each province, recommendations for a limited system of national primary
highways designed to provide a basis for improved inter-regional transportation:
Provided, That in the selection and planning of the entire highway system the
Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall invariably take into
consideration the military highway needs of the Philippines. These plans and
recommendations shall also include secondary systems of national and of “national
aid” provincial and city or municipal roads to assure continuity and articulation in the
entire integrated system. Upon completion of these plans, he shall prepare and submit
to the National Transportation Board a revision of the classification of roads which
shall be established by Executive Order of the President.

78
All the sums allocated under sections six (d), nine and ten of this Act shall thereafter
be expended upon the system of highways established under this article.

ARTICLE IX.—Rules and Regulations, Report to President

SEC. 27. Rules and regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of Public Works and
Communications.—The Secretary of Public Works and Communications shall
prescribe and promulgate the necessary rules and regulations to carry out the
provisions of this Act. He shall make such recommendations to the President and to
the provincial board or city council concerned, as he may deem necessary to preserve
and protect the highways and insure traffic safety.

SEC. 28. Report.—On or before the end of August of each year, the Secretary of
Public Works and Communications shall make a report to the President, which shall
include the detailed statements of the work done, status of each project undertaken, the
allocation of funds and appropriations, an itemized statement of expenditures and
receipts during the preceding fiscal year under this Act, an itemized statement of the
traveling and other expenses, including a list of employees, their duties, salaries and
traveling expenses, if any, and his recommendations, if any, for new legislation
amending or supplementing this Act. The Secretary of Public Works and
Communications shall also make such special reports as Congress may request.

ARTICLE X.—Special Provisions and Penalties

SEC. 29. Special provisions.—Upon approval of this Act, no money, whether from
current or from accumulated previous releases, from the Highway Special Fund shall
be spent during a period of forty-five days immediately preceding any election except
for:

(a) Expenditures for purely maintenance work in existing roads, bridges, ferries and
other stream-crossing facilities, the total disbursements of which shall not exceed the
monthly average expenditure for such purposes in the province or city during the
previous year: Provided, That the total monthly disbursement for all such provinces
and cities shall not exceed three million pesos;

79
(b) Payment of the costs of actual construction or improvement already awarded by
contract; and,

(c) Payment for the usual cost of the preparation of working drawings, specifications,
bill of materials, estimates, and other procedures preliminary to actual construction,
including the purchase of materials and equipment.

SEC. 30. Penalties.—It shall be unlawful for any person to usurp any portion of a
right-of-way, to convert any part of any public highway, bridge, wharf or trail to his
own private use or to obstruct the same in any manner, or to use any highway ditch for
irrigation or other private purposes, and any person so offending shall be punished by
a fine of not more than two hundred pesos or by imprisonment not exceeding three
months.

Any person altering boundaries or location monuments or road right-of-ways shall be

punished under article three hundred and thirteen of the Revised Penal Code.

Any person who shall remove any tool or any road making material from any
highway, or mutilate, damage, destroy, or in any manner interfere with any public
bridge, culvert, drainage canal, road marker, sign, or other road or road-side
development facilities shall be punished under article three hundred and twenty-eight
of the Revised Penal Code.

If the obstruction or damage shall result in any road or motor-vehicle accident, the
penalty provided in the second paragraph of article three hundred and thirty of the
Revised Penal Code shall be imposed.

ARTICLE XI.—Final Provisions

SEC. 31. Acts, Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Ordinances, etc., repealed.—
Act Numbered One thousand five hundred and eleven, otherwise known as The
Philippine Road Law, and all Executive Orders, Administrative Orders, Ordinances,
and Regulations inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed.

80
SEC. 32. Act, when in effect.—This Act shall take effect upon its approval, except
sections four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten hereof which shall take effect on
January first, nineteen hundred and fifty-four.

Approved: June 20, 1953

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Appendix C

JUL 0 7 2014
Republic of the Philippines
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND HIGHWAYS
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY
Manila
DEPARTMENT ORDER NO. 73 _
Series of 2014
SUBJECT PROHIBITED USES WITHIN THE RIGHT-Of-WAY Of
NATIONAL ROADS
The presence of fallen electrical and other utility poles, tangled/twisted
transmission/distribution and other lines of cable, communications and utility service
providers; and felled trees along national roads as a result of natural and man-made
calamities create imminent danger to lives and properties and hamper speedy relief
operations, prompt delivery of basic goods and services and the immediate restoration
of damaged public infrastructure facilities.
In view hereof, and pursuant to the provisions of Section 23 of Presidential
Decree (PD) No. 17, also known as the Revised Philippine Highway Act, as amended,
declaring as unlawful for any person to usurp any portion of a right-of-way, to convert
any part of any public highway, bridge, wharf or trail to his own private use or to
obstruct the same in any manner; and the provisions of the National Building Code of
the Philippines (PD No. 1096) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations, and in the
interest of public safety and convenience and of the common good, all
Regional/District Engineering Offices are hereby directed to immediately remove or
cause the removal of all obstructions and prohibited uses within the right-of-way
(ROW) of all national roads within their respective jurisdictions and henceforth
prohibit the presence/occurrence of the following structures, objects and such other
similar items and activities along our national roads as well as strictly disallow the
building, erection, construction, planting, and fabrication of the same, thus:
1. All kinds of temporary and permanent structures, such as buildings, houses,
shanties, stores, shops, stalls, sheds, canopies, billboards, signages, advertisements,
fences, walls, railings, basketball courts, barangay halls, garbage receptacles, and the
like;
2. Posts and towers of Electric Cooperatives and Major Electric Power
Distributors; distribution lines; posts for cables of phones and mobile service
providers;
3. Driveways and ramps occupying or protruding to the sidewalk;
4. Trees, shrubs, and plant boxes;
5. Humps, whether permanent or temporary;

82
6. Dumping and storage of construction materials, such as sand, gravel, cement,
lumber and steel bars, earth spoils, waste materials, debris, embankment, heaps, and
the like;
7. Vehicles and equipment, including junked items that are parked, occupying or
protruding to the sidewalk or shoulder;
8. Vending, repair of vehicles, and other businesses within the sidewalk and other
parts
9. Disposal of household/commercial/industrial wastewater and sewage into the
sidewalk, curb and gutter, and carriageway;
10. Raising of animals or allowing them to roam within the ROW;
11. Washing and drying of clothes, crops, and similar items;
Should clearing operations for road widening; improvement and/or
rehabilitation are to be conducted, no compensation shall therefore be paid and
allowed on the removal of these obstructions.
It is further directed that in cases where Applicants from Utility Agencies
(collectively, Electric Cooperatives and Major Electric Power Distributors, Phones,
Mobile, and Cable Service providers and the like) and its respective contractors shall
request the construction, building and/or erection of posts and towers for their
distribution lines, subject Applicants should therefore be advised that they should now
commence the acquisition of their own right-of way to fulfill their specific mandate.
Note further that in the context of this Order, the ROW shall include the carriageway,
curb and gutter, sidewalks, shoulders, canals and other portions within the defined
road right-of-way.
On obstructions, the following tabulated formats under Annexes "A"; "B"; and
"C" hereof shall be used by the Regional/District Engineering Offices with these duly
filled-up formats to be submitted to this Office (copy furnished the Bureau of
Maintenance, this Department) ever end of the 1st and 2nd semester of the year.
1) Annex "A" : Inventory of Obstructions within the Right-of-way of National
Roads;
2) Annex "B": Due notices to the concerned persons and entities of the noted
obstructions and prohibited uses and directing the voluntary removal of the same;
3) Annex "C": Status Report on the Removal of Obstructions.
This Department Order shall take effect immediately and shall supersede the
following departmental issuances:
1) DO No. 29 s. 2012: Removal of Illegal Structures and Obstructions within
Right-of-Way or National Roads;
2) DO No. 15 s. 2000: Tree Planting along National Roads;
3) DO No. 38 s. 2006: Amendment to Department Order No. 15, series of 2000, Re:
Tree
Planting along National Roads;

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4) DO No. 52 s. 2003: Removal of Obstructions and Prohibited Uses within the Right-
of-Way or National Roads

ROGELIO L. SINGSON
Secretary
Department of Public Works and Highways
Office of the Secretary

84
Appendix D

RESPONDENTS OF THE STUDY PER LOCALITY

Locality f
BASISTA 30

BINMALEY 40

BUGALLON 30

DAGUPAN 40

AGUILAR 30

LABRADOR 30

LINGAYEN 40

MANGALDAN 40

MANAOAG 40

MANGATAREM 30

SAN FABIAN 40

SAN JACINTO 30

URBIZTONDO 30

TOTAL 450

85
 CURRICULUM VITAE

PAUL PULIDO MAGLIBA

Barangay Magliba, San Fabian, Pangasinan
Cel. #. 0917-871-8506

PERSONAL BACKGROUND

Date of Birth : April 17, 1978

Place of Birth : Dagupan City
Nationality : Filipino
Civil Status : Married
Gender : Male
Height : 5’2”
Weight : 78 kgs.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND:

ELEMENTARY: Edna’s School – 1985-1991

SECONDARY: Cherished Moments School

1991-1995

COLLEGE: University of Baguio

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering
1995-2000

POST GRADUATE: Metro-Dagupan Colleges

Master in Public Administration
Major in General Curriculum
2015 to present

CIVIL SERVICE/BOARD EXAMINATION

Civil Engineering Licensure Examination - PRC given May 2000

Materials Engineer 1 - November 26, 2014

86
SERVICE RECORD

01/01/16 PRESENT Engineer II DPWH, 3rd District Engineering

07/01/15 12/31/15 Engineer II DPWH, 3rd District Engineering
01/01/15 06/30/15 Engineer II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/01/14 12/31/14 Engineer II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
07/01/13 12/31/13 Engineer II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/13 06/30/13 Engineer II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
12/07/12 12/30/12 Engineer II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
07/01/12 12/06/12 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/12 06/30/12 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
12/07/12 12/30/12 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/11 12/30/11 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/10 12/30/10 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/09 12/30/09 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
01/02/08 12/30/08 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering
03/19/07 12/30/07 Laboratory Tech. II DPWH, 2nd District Engineering

TRAINING PROGRAMS ATTENDED

Comprehensive Training for Field Engineers 11/5/2012 11/29/2012 168 hrs DPWH-RO1

Quality Control Assesment Workshop &

2/7/2013 2/8/2013 16 hrs DPWH-RO1
Instructional Meeting for DPWH Field Engineer
IT Training on Windows 8 & Microsoft 2013:
4/24/2014 4/26/2014 24 hrs DPWH-PANG 2ND DEO
Overview & Updates
Training on Quality Control in Project
5/5/2014 5/26/2014 80 hrs DPWH-RO1
Implementation
Materials Testing Technology 7/16/2014 8/19/2014 176 hrs DPWH-BRS

√
87