The Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge, built through a Chinese grant, finally opened on Thursday, July 29.

Also called as “Rockwell” Bridge, the upgraded Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge will have four lanes, connecting Estrella, Makati City, to Barangka Drive, Mandaluyong City. The expected capacity is 50,000 vehicles a day.

The bridge is the first China-funded project under the Build, Build, Build infrastructure program to be completed.

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As President Rodrigo Duterte inaugurated the Rockwell bridge on Thursday, he said that he refused to take credit for the project.

“I said this is not my work,” Duterte recalled telling Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Mark Villar.

“This is the work of the people involved directly – the People’s Republic of China who provided the money, and the workforce of the DPWH, its dedicated workers, at ‘yung mga taong naghirap dito (and those who worked hard for this),” said Duterte.

On Thursday, Duterte thanked Beijing for funding the project.

“A P1.46-billion funding that they have extended highlights the goodwill of the Chinese people and government, and further cements relations between our two countries,” Duterte said.

The Estrella-Pantaleon Bridge is part of a P5.27-billion Chinese grant. The other bridge is the Binondo-Intramuros Bridge, which is expected to be completed by end-2021.

The grant allowed China to conduct the survey, design, and construction of two bridges along the Pasig River, and hire Chinese blue-collar workers. – Rappler.com