TACLOBAN, Philippines – A ban on trucks, other heavy vehicles, and cargo on the 53-year-old San Juanico Bridge, imposed ahead of planned rehabilitation work, is already disrupting trade and mobility in Eastern Visayas, with business leaders warning of mounting economic losses and truck drivers reporting prolonged delays.
Leyte provincial board member Wilson Uy said the weight restriction is threatening businesses already burdened by increased transport costs.
Officials called it “partial closure,” but the rule merely limits passage to vehicles under three tons.
“Small business owners may be forced to close down because of the rise in travel costs. And if their businesses can no longer stay competitive, naturally they’ll look for other areas where they can earn better,” Uy told Rappler on Wednesday, May 21.
Uy, a former president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Tacloban-Leyte Incorporated, said more than a thousand trucks passed through the San Juanico Bridge daily before the restriction.
He said the bridge’s current restriction, which began May 15, has choked this flow of goods and rerouted cargo to longer and more expensive sea journeys.
Uy said he was worried because businesses in Leyte are already losing an estimated P20 million daily, and called for an expedited rehabilitation process.
The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has set a two-year timeline for the rehabilitation, which has yet to begin. Closures are expected once construction starts.
Meanwhile, local officials like Uy and business groups have called for regulated pricing from roll-on/roll-off (RoRo) and landing craft tank (LCT) operators serving temporary routes through ports such as Calbayog, Ormoc, Basey, Babatngon, Palompon, and Catbalogan.
The problem now is in the dilapidated port infrastructure, which hampers the loading of trucks, other vehicles, and their cargo onto vessels.
In Basey, Samar, more than 30 six-wheel trucks have been stranded at the Amandayehan port for over a week. Among the drivers is Abet Solahigan, who was en route from Subic to Zamboanga when he was forced to wait.
“They told us there was a way through here, but it turns out we’d be waiting a whole week. We’re still here. The port is still under construction,” Solahigan said on Thursday, May 22.
Solahigan added, “There’s no action being taken. Just look at what they’re doing. This is worse than the damage from (Typhoon) Yolanda. Back then, we could still cross the San Juanico Bridge. Now the elections are over and we still can’t get across.”
He said the delays have already affected their earnings and their families, especially as the school year begins.
“They should help us get across. This delay is costing us our daily expenses. There is aid, yes, but our income is reduced. That’s money we should be using to buy our children’s school supplies. Our families are counting on us,” Solahigan said.
Uy echoed these calls, warning that the added transport and fuel costs will eventually drive up prices for essential goods and weigh heavily on consumers.
“This bottleneck is expected to increase transportation costs, leading to higher prices for essential goods and potentially forcing small businesses in Leyte to shut down due to reduced competitiveness, resulting in significant job losses,” he said. – Rappler.com
Some quotes have been translated from Filipino to English for brevity and clarity.