Pan-Philippine Highway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Pan-Philippine Highway |
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| Maharlika Highway | |
| Length: | 2500 km (1553 mi) |
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| Direction: | North/South |
| From: | Laoag City, Ilocos Norte |
| To: | Zamboanga City |
The Pan-Philippine Highway (also known as the Maharlika Highway) (AH 26) is a 3500 km network of roads, bridges, and ferry services that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao in the Philippines, serving as the country's principal transport backbone.
The northern terminus of the highway is at Laoag City, and the southern terminus is at Zamboanga City.
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[edit] Development
The highway was proposed in 1965, with government planners believing that it, in conjunction with other road construction, would stimulate agricultural production by reducing transportation costs, encourage social and economic development outside the major urban centers, and expand industrial production for domestic and foreign markets. It was and supported by loans and grants from foreign aid institutions, including the World Bank. When completed, it was considered a major achievement in road construction.
The highway was rehabilitated and improved in 1997 with assistance from the Japanese government, and dubbed the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway.
In 1998, the Department of Tourism designated 35 sections of the highway as "Scenic Highways" with developed amenities for travelers and tourists.
[edit] Asian Highway Network
The Pan-Philippine Highway is designated as AH 26 in the Asian Highway Network, a cooperative project which seeks to improve highway systems and standards across the continent. It is currently the only highway in the network that does not connect to any other highway in the network — the sections of the Asian Highway Network in Japan (AH 1), Sri Lanka (AH 43) and Indonesia (Template:AH-AH) are all linked to the mainland sections by ferries to South Korea (Busan), India (Dhanushkodi), and Singapore, respectively.
[edit] See also
- Transportation in the Philippines
- Department of Public Works and Highways (Philippines)
- Asian Highway Network
[edit] References
- http://www.bookrags.com/history/worldhistory/pan-philippine-highway-ema-04/
- http://manilarat.blogspot.com/2005/11/philippine-tourism-highway.html
- http://www.philippineembassy-usa.org/about/economy.htm
