A new San Juanico Bridge is expected to be completed in one year, around June 2026, as the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) fast-tracks construction of the replacement for the current bridge. The original structure, a project of then-President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., was opened 53 years ago to connect the Visayas to Luzon by land but has since suffered irreparable damage.
DPWH Secretary Manuel M. Bonoan, who accompanied President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during an inspection of the bridge in June 11, 2025, committed that a new San Juanico Bridge will span the Samar-Leyte strait within a year. The bridge could also be opened gradually to heavier vehicles—from the current 3-ton limit to four tons, and eventually up to 12-ton trucks.
President Marcos revealed that a rehabilitation plan had initially been considered, only for engineers to discover that the existing structure was in a “dire strait” with “buckling of the bottom.”
“Upon inspection, the engineers saw it was in great danger of collapse, so they really needed to close it as it could collapse. The bridge looks good when seen from the outside, but the problem, there is buckling of the bottom already,” he said.
Witch Hunt
Marcos noted that the bridge has not undergone proper maintenance since it opened to the public 53 years ago. It was supposed to be maintained every three years. He said proper maintenance was only consistent up to the end of his father’s term and has not been properly carried out since 1986.
However, Marcos said he is not pursuing a witch hunt over the neglect of this critical infrastructure. “We will plead ignorance, we were not here yet,” he said.
Transport costs for the route are inevitably rising, the President acknowledged. Although the government may provide some assistance, he said, “We cannot cover all the price increase. That’s what happened because of the condition of the bridge.”
Measures
Marcos has already mobilized government agencies to implement agreed measures, like additional funding, to ensure the continued flow of commerce. He noted of several sectors affected and that truckers carrying perishable goods, such as vegetables, have been stranded for days.
The government has designated new routes and is using the roll-on/roll-off system to allow 30 trucks at a time—doubling of ramps to allow capacity to reach up to 500 trucks daily. Night navigation is also being implemented to allow vessels to operate between Samar and Leyte after dark.
Regarding the declaration of a state of calamity in Eastern Visayas due to the San Juanico Bridge closure, the President said the declaration can only be lifted when “traffic has returned to normal.”
