Bonifacio Drive
Bonifacio Drive is a road running approximately in a north-south direction between Intramuros and the Port Area in Manila, Philippines. The boulevard is also designated as Radial Road 1 of Manila's arterial road network, National Route 120 of the Philippine highway network, and an auxiliary route of Asian Highway 26.
The boulevard is named after national hero Andrés Bonifacio, the Supremo of the Katipunan and thus the father of the 1896 Philippine Revolution against the Spanish Empire.
Another street in Manila is also named Bonifacio Drive. It is located at the Tutuban Center shopping complex in Tondo.
History
The road was previously called Malecon Drive during the American period. During Spanish rule, it was known simply as Malecón, as the road was such before the reclamation of South Harbor during the late 19th century. It was also known alternatively as Paseo de María Cristina, after the then Queen of Spain Maria Cristina, or Paseo de Santa Lucia. It was later renamed to Calle A. Bonifacio or Calle Bonifacio. It used to connect Luneta Park to the southern bank of the Pasig River, where the Anda Monument was previously located. After World War II, the monument was transferred to its present site at the road's intersection with Calle Aduana, which was converted into a present-day roundabout called Anda Circle. In 1975, Roxas Bridge was built to connect Bonifacio Drive to the northern parts of Manila across the Pasig River.In 2019, Bonifacio Drive's section from Anda Circle to Roxas Bridge became part of the newly-renamed Mel Lopez Boulevard by virtue of Republic Act No. 11280.