Back in April 2021, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) announced that the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge is on track to be opened this year. They didn't give an exact date, although four months ago, they initially planned on completing the bridge in September of this year.

Recently, the DPWH announced that the bridge project will be substantially finished this December. With the bridge already 70% finished, some of you might be asking what's causing the delay?

According to the agency, the fabricated steel box girders which will be used for the viaduct and ramp over Estero de Binondo are expected to arrive in August 2021. So despite work on the main bridge being close to complete, there is still the matter of actually connecting the 70-meter main bridge with Solana Street and Riverside Drive in Intramuros, to Rentas/Plaza del Conde Street and Muela dela Industria in Binondo.

Still, the DPWH is confident that they will be able to finish work on the said bridge this year. Once it's complete, around 30,000 vehicles are expected to cross the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge daily. Not only will the four-lane bridge ease traffic congestion between Intramuros and Binondo, but it will also help extend the life of nearby bridges like Jones, Delpan, and MacArthur by reducing the number of vehicles that pass through them.

The completion of the Binondo-Intramuros bridge may have been met with another delay, but with the box girders set to arrive around next month, it cannot be helped. But once work on the bridge is complete by the end of the year, perhaps it will be opened to the public during the Christmas holidays, or in January 2022.