New footbridge ‘cheaper’ than reusing skywalk slabs

Building a new footbridge at the South Road Properties (SRP) is cheaper compared to using the concrete slabs removed from the dismantled Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City skywalk.

City Councilor Jerry Guardo said this was what they initially assessed, as constructing the footbridge would actually cost less than reusing the skywalk slabs.

“When you build a new one, mas dali, mas sayon. Kay kining slab, kung imong ipatong maggamit man ka’g crane, kay di man ni maalsa og tawo. So, ang pag-rent sa equipment ang gitan-aw nila na nga mas mahal,” he said.

Besides, the councilor said, the City’s Department of Engineering and Public Works also to assess and evaluate the structural integrity of the concrete slabs, which were transported from the Robinsons Fuente area to the city’s stockyard at the SRP.

“Kung structurally sound pa ba ug iyang integrity ligon pa ba,” said Guardo, the City Council committee on infrastructure chairman.

He said that should the slabs be assessed by the structural engineer as no longer viable, then the City’s option is just to build the footbridge from everything new.

“The engineering department will probably come up with a report if structurally sound pa ba sya or di na. Ana lang,” Guardo said.

The slabs were originally intended to reuse as part of a footbridge that should connect the SRP with the coastal barangays of the city.

Guardo said that the integrity assessment was not yet done because the focus right now is the removal of the two skywalks because the Commission on Audit (COA) requires a post-audit evaluation of the skywalks.

He, however, said that the COA did not require for the slabs to still be structurally sound but to ensure that the skywalks, which are government properties, would still be visible.

As to the second skywalk, which is located across Cebu Normal University, Guardo said civil works for its removal and transfer started Tuesday night.

He said the roofs were removed first and that there will be no road closure yet in the daytime because the work can still be done in the evening, which was what Mayor Michael Rama instructed to avoid unnecessary inconvenience to the general public, especially during rush hours.

“They are very particular on the safety ba, kining ((Cebu Bus Rapid Transit) contractor. Once mag-start na man gud mag-detach (of the other parts of the skywalk) sila, magwelding, they have to make sure nga way madisgrasya,” the councilor said.

He said that to ensure safety once it is time for the separation and removal of the concrete slabs, total road closure would be implemented, possibly on Thursday evening to Sunday.