(ALFRED ROMUALDEZ FACEBOOK)
Decades of isolation to end?
TACLOBAN CITY – A long-awaited infrastructure project in Northern Samar is finally moving closer to reality, with the Samar Pacific Coastal Road 2 (SPCR 2) included in the proposed 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP).
The project, backed by a $111.43 million (P6.34 billion) loan from the Export-Import Bank of Korea, will build two key bridges—the 800-meter Laoang Bridge 2, connecting Barangay Talisay to Poblacion Laoang, and the 605-meter Laoang Bridge 3, linking Barangay Calomotan to Barangay Pangpang in Palapag.
Once completed, travel time from Palapag and Laoang to mainland Northern Samar will shrink from an hour to just 15 minutes.
Northern Samar Governor Edwin Harris Ongchuan hailed the development as a breakthrough for towns historically plagued by geographic isolation and disaster vulnerability.
“We extend our deepest gratitude to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for fulfilling his commitment to fund the Samar Pacific Coastal Road II Project by including it in the 2026 NEP,” Ongchuan said.
He also thanked House Speaker Martin Romualdez and the Regional Development Council for their support in advancing the proposal.
The governor underscored the life-saving potential of the project, recalling a 2015 tragedy when 12 passengers went missing after their boat capsized during Typhoon ‘Nona’.
“Projects like this are not just about progress; they are also about saving lives,” Gov. Ongchuan stressed.
Laoang, once Northern Samar’s commercial hub in the 1960s and ’70s, lost its prominence when maritime trade waned and road networks developed elsewhere. Ongchuan hopes SPCR 2 will revive the area as a gateway for trade and commerce.
The project traces its roots to a proposal by the late Rep. Emil Ong and RDC endorsement in 2021. It follows SPCR 1, the Simora-Palapag Road, inaugurated by President Marcos in 2023 after five years of construction, also funded by the Export-Import Bank of Korea.
Officials believe SPCR 2 will unlock economic growth for long-marginalized Pacific towns like Laoang, Palapag, Mapanas, Gamay, and Lapinig, transforming connectivity and resilience in Northern Samar.
JOEY A. GABIETA
