House bill seeking full rehab of Kennon road approved

Congressman Mark Go in Kapihan Year-end 2021

BAGUIO CITY — House bill no. 6491 entitled “An Act Mandating the Full Rehabilitation and Maintenance of Kennon Road under the Department of Public Works and Highways” passed by both houses on September 6, 2021, has now been submitted to Malacañang for the President to sign, Baguio City Lone District representative Mark Go announced on Friday, December 10.

Go, principal author of the bill said he wants a permanent rehabilitation of Kennon Road to make it an all-weather road for the safety and convenience of travellers and residents.

“The government spends millions every month, yet the highway [Kennon Road] is often closed because of situations like erosions and landslides,” Go said.

Kennon Road is a 33.53-kilometer highway connecting the highland of Benguet to the lowland town of Rosario, La Union.

It was constructed and opened for travel on January 29, 1905, and is the shortest route among the three access roads to the city of Baguio and the province of Benguet from the town of Rosario in the province of La Union.

Go said the rehabilitation may take two to three years to complete and will cover the area before Camp 1 in Benguet and some parts of Rosario, La Union and the entire stretch up to Camp 8 in Baguio City.

The congressman said that work can start soon after the bill is signed into law and after bidding and other necessary procedures had been undertaken.

He said that the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is presently working on the completion of an overall technical study through the Asian Development Bank (ADB), including the identification of areas along the highway that are prone to erosion and landslides and if these areas are reparable.

Go also said that if these identified areas are irreparable, there should have to be a substitute area within the same vicinity where erosion and landslides are prone and have a permanent fix in order to avoid its occurrence under any weather conditions.

Go said that the overall technical study should be ready by the first quarter of 2022, and once completed and an amount has been established, it is best “to include it already in the budget for 2023 which will be submitted by May or June of 2022”.

After its rehabilitation, “travellers will save on toll and time as it will take only about 30 minutes to reach Baguio City from Camp 1,” the congressman said. //Merriam del Rosario-FNS