Marcelo Fernan Bridge



Marcelo Fernan Bridge, also known as Second Cebu–Mactan Bridge and the Second Bridge locally, is an extradosed cable-stayed bridge located in Metro Cebu in the Philippines. It crosses Mactan Channel connecting Mandaue in mainland Cebu to Lapu-Lapu City in Mactan Island. It is currently the second-longest cable-stayed bridge in the Philippines after Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway which also crosses the Mactan Channel. Before it was named the Marcelo Fernan Bridge, it was also called the Consolacion Bridge (which was a temporary name), owing to its proximity to the municipality of Consolacion, which is 1.6 mi from the north end of the bridge. It is one of three bridges crossing Mactan Channel, the others being Mactan–Mandaue Bridge (opened in 1973) and the aforementioned Cebu–Cordova Link Expressway (opened in 2022).

History
Marcelo Fernan Bridge was opened in August 1999 to decongest the traffic from the older Mactan–Mandaue Bridge, which opened in 1973. The bridge has a total length of 1237 m with a center span of 185 m, and was inaugurated by Philippine President Joseph Estrada on August 3, 1999. After its completing, the bridge was one of the widest and longest bridge spans in the Philippines. The bridge was constructed with the help of the Japanese Government. It was named after Senator Marcelo Fernan, a political figure from Cebu City.

Additional information
On the Mactan Island side of the bridge, there is a park called the Millennium Park at the base of the bridge's piers, and the Filipino Seafarers Memorial is located in that park. Also, the bridge has two pedestrian walkways, one on the north side of the bridge, and one on the south side. On the Cebu Island side of the bridge, there is Mandaue, and the bridge is accessed via United Nations Avenue. The Mactan side of the bridge, which is in Lapu-Lapu City, is accessed by Old Patiller Road, a spur road of the Manuel L. Quezon National Highway.

The bridge also sits astride the northern end of the Mactan Channel, which is a gateway to the Cebu International Port which is managed by the Cebu Port Authority, where about 80% of domestic and international shipping operators and shipbuilders in the Philippines are located. The Mactan–Mandaue Bridge is located about 1.6 km south of the Marcelo Fernan Bridge.