Otis Bridge in Manila reopens in time for holiday rush
Otis Bridge in Paco, Manila has been reopened Tuesday after a five-month reconstruction due to a collapsed portion in June.
The 80-meter bridge was ordered closed by the Department of Public Works and Highways in June after authorities found that a 20-meter portion of the structure collapsed. The reconstruction of the old bridge was then implemented.
The bridge that connects Paco and Pandacan is now six-lane wide. Initially, it has been opened to light vehicles. DPWH Secretary Mark Villar, however, said that “eventually, the bridge will accommodate trucks that are within the
A brave woman passenger used a toothbrush to escape from a taxi driver who has hitting her with a steel pipe after robbing her in Quezon City past midnight of Tuesday.
The woman later reported the crime to the police who arrested the taxi driver in a hospital where he had sought treatment for the wound in his eye.
Quezon City Police Station 4 commander, Superintendent Rossel Cejas, identified the suspect as Zaldy normal capacity.”
“The newly-reconstructed Otis Bridge has been widened from four lanes to six lanes. It’s maximum allowable weight was also increased from 15 tons to 20 tons to accommodate more motorists in the area,” Villar said.
He also added that compared to the old version of the bridge, the new Otis Bridge is “much more resilient as it was built using new technologies.”
Villas explained that the bridge is also “seismic-created for the largest earthquakes transmitted.”
The reopening of the bridge is expected to ease traffic congestion in Osmena Highway, Quirino Avenue, and United Nations Avenue. According to Macatiag, 41, a resident of Rodriguez, Rizal.
A police report showed that 28year-old victim identified as Malou Luyang, a supervisor of a fast food chain, boarded the taxi driven by Macatiag at the Araneta Center in Cubao around 12 a.m.
The woman requested the driver to bring her to her residence at the Sandiganbayan area along Commonwealth Avenue, but the driver took another route.
Upon arriving at a dim portion of Engineering Street in Barangay the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, some 3,700 motorists pass the bridge every day.
It will also serve as a link of vehicles traversing South Manila to North Manila as well as the cities of Quezon, Caloocan, and Mandaluyong.
The reconstruction of the bridge, Villar said, was completed ahead of time as the original date of completion was scheduled in February 2019. A total of R33.58 million was spent for its replacement.
The secretary said “this will be another Christmas gift to motorists, specifically in this area of Manila.”
Otis Bridge was built in 1968. It has since serve as major artery for cargo vehicles in Manila. Sauyo, Novaliches, the taxi driver declared the holdup.
Macatiag forcibly took the victim's cellphone worth P6,000, and hit her with a steel pipe on different parts of her body.
The victim, meanwhile, managed to get a toothbrush inside her bag and struck the suspect's eye.
She hurriedly alighted the cab and sought help from a tricycle driver who rushed her to the Far Eastern University hospital.
She reported the incident to Novaliches Police Station (PS-4). At past 1 a.m., PS-4 personnel received information from a traffic officer from Quezon City Police District Traffic Sector 5 about an injured taxi driver who was brought to East Avenue Medical Center.
The victim positively identified the suspect as the cabbie who robbed and injured her resulting in the latter's arrest.
Recovered from the suspect's taxi were a 16 inches long steel pipe, a cellphone, maroon luggage, and a black sling bag containing several identification cards.