A section of Daang Maharlika in Nueva Ecija required much-needed upgrades after the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) completed its road and drainage improvement projects along the highway’s 1.79-kilometer portion in Barangay Castellano in San Leonardo town.
DPWH Secretary Roger G. Mercado said that the DPWH Nueva Ecija 2nd District Engineering Office (DEO) conducted the P95.72-Million improvement efforts which covered the concreting and asphalting of road shoulders with a total width of 1.70 meters on both sides.
According to District Engineer Elpidio Y. Trininad of DPWH Nueva Ecija 2nd DEO, concrete paving of road shoulders allows for a maximized use of the existing road in catering slow-moving vehicles traversing the area and accommodating large volume of traffic.
To guarantee the safety of motorist utilizing the road network, provisions of a drainage canal, sidewalk, and combined curb and gutter were also included in the improvement project.
A high density polyethylene pipe was used as strong and high impermeable drainage pipe with 1000 millimeter diameter can ensure the proper flow of water in times of heavy rainfall.
The drainage structure, designed to divert excess water to a larger drainage system such as the Peñaranda River, is expected to prevent the stagnation of water in the carriageway while at the same time easing the existing flooding problems in the area.
Based on the DPWH’s annual average daily traffic counts, a total of 22,546 vehicles passed through the Brgy. Castellano section of Daang Maharlika in 2020 making it one of the busiest road networks in the province of Nueva Ecija.