ROXAS City – Department of Transportation (DOTr) secretary Arthur Tugade took advantage of the long weekend which ended on Monday (Nov. 30) with the marking of Bonifacio Day to conduct a series of inspections of seaports and airports in the provinces of Samar, Cebu, Aklan, including the cities of Tacloban and Dumaguete.
Although not included in the itinerary, Team DOTr decided to seize the opportunity to conduct a surprise inspection of the Roxas Airport in Capiz to check on the progress of the ongoing site acquisition.
Upon landing, the transport chief and team were welcomed by Roxas City’s Mayor Ronnie Dadivas, Pueblo De Panay Inc. chief executive officer Jose Neri Ong, and Roxas Airport Manager II Cynthia Aspera.
The team made the rounds at the Roxas Airport facilities, and also checked the proposed site acquisition for expansion.
Tugade also inspected the completed asphalting of the runway shoulders and strip grade correction.
The initial phase of the Roxas Airport Development project was completed in 2019.
More improvements are eyed for the Roxas Airport, said Dadivas.
“I, together with the Capiz Halaran Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was given the opportunity to discuss with Secretary Tugade possible plans for the further improvement of the airport,” said Dadivas.
The city mayor added that they also discussed with Tugade other development projects beneficial for the economy and tourism industry of Roxas City.
Roxas Airport serves the general area of Roxas City, the capital of the province of Capiz. It is classified a Class 1 principal airport, by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a body of the DOTr responsible for the operations of not only this airport but also of all other airports in the Philippines except the major international airports.
Before inspecting Roxas Airport, Tugade and his team checked the progress of the Kalibo International Airport Development Project in Aklan.
They underwent a walk-through of the Kalibo Airport work area and inspected the site development works for a new apron, taxiway, Passenger Terminal Building, Vehicle Parking Area, and the Airport Access Road.
This development project is expected to be completed by July 2021, with the Passenger Terminal Building improvement project now 98 percent complete, and will be ready for operability before the end of this year./PN
