House Minority Leader Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan has welcomed the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) decision to provide P500 million to help fund the rigorous feasibility study for the proposed 20-kilometer Sorsogon-Samar Transport Crossing (SSTC) over the San Bernardino Strait.
“We are very pleased that the ADB has decided to come on board the Sorsogon-Samar Transport Crossing (SSTC) project at this early stage,” Libanan, a 4Ps party-list representative, said in a statement on Sunday.
“We never doubted the readiness of international development partners to support the project, considering its exceptionally high economic rate of return (ERR),” Libanan added.
Libanan leads the group of Eastern Visayas lawmakers pushing for a fixed link between Matnog, Sorsogon, and Allen, Northern Samar, to provide a permanent road connection between Luzon and the Visayas.
The link is expected to reduce travel time between Matnog and Allen to 20 minutes, compared with roughly 2.5 hours using the existing roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ferry system.
The ferry service is also vulnerable to port bottlenecks and disruptions during bad weather, making a fixed crossing potentially important for more reliable transport and connectivity between Luzon and the Visayas.
The ADB feasibility study funding commitment was disclosed during House plenary deliberations on the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH) 2027 budget.
Surigao del Sur Rep. Romeo Momo Sr. relayed the information from DPWH Secretary Vince Dizon while responding to questions from Libanan about the SSTC feasibility study during the Sept. 24 plenary debates.
Momo said the ADB’s P500 million commitment would augment the P130 million initially appropriated by Congress for the feasibility study.
The ADB itself is expected to bid out the feasibility study in November, with completion targeted within 12 months.
The ADB is a multilateral development bank that promotes economic and social development and seeks to reduce poverty in Asia and the Pacific. Japan is the largest contributor to the ADB’s development funds.
The proposed SSTC is considered a technically complex and large-scale infrastructure project that would require extensive marine, bathymetric, geological and geotechnical investigations.
The feasibility study would also examine oceanographic conditions, seismic risks, navigation, environmental and social impacts, and the effects of typhoons and other extreme weather events.
High economic return
In a previous House appropriations committee hearing, Dizon had cited the SSTC’s estimated 42 percent ERR, compared with 33 percent for the Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge.
ERR measures the economic benefits generated by a project relative to its cost.
These benefits can include reduced travel time and vehicle operating costs, fewer accidents, lower transport and logistics expenses, increased trade and tourism, more employment and economic activity, and improved access to markets and essential services.
Nearly P1 trillion in projected benefits
According to a project concept brief prepared by T.Y. Lin International Group Ltd., a San Francisco-based global multidisciplinary engineering firm, the SSTC could generate nearly P1 trillion in annual economic benefits.
Described in the brief as “the missing link,” the project “would close one of the most consequential gaps in the national highway system.”
The brief estimates preliminary annual economic benefits of P975 billion, consisting of:
- P296 billion in vehicle operating cost savings
- P291 billion in land development and tourism impact;
- P272 billion in time-value savings; and
- P116 billion in logistics efficiency.#
