The rakyat thinks that all these obsessions with highways, is only causing more environmental damage (to rivers, jungles and unused land), uprooting and relocation of existing families, also taxing road users for poor capacity of road use.
>From report -- The Selangor government is now looking into four other highway proposals aside from Bangi-Putrajaya, says state exco Izham Hashim. (selangor.gov.my pic)
PETALING JAYA: The Selangor government said that they received an application from the federal government to approve a highway project that links Bangi and Putrajaya.
Izham Hashim, who is the exco in charge of infrastructure, public facilities, agricultural modernisation and agro-based industry, said they will look into the proposal in the next state secretariat meeting.
He said he has reservations over the proposed Bangi-Putrajaya highway as it involves construction over rivers.
“Normally, we will not reject projects like this because they can contribute to the connectivity within Selangor.
“I voiced out my concerns over the Bangi-Putrajaya project because it may involve relocating residents living near the rivers, and may also contribute to pollution and floods.
“The state government will put strict criteria against the contractor before we can allow them to start work,” he said when asked by moderator Wan Anwar Ibrahim over the issue of highways during a Selangor Amanah talk show.
Izham Hashim.
Izham, however, did not provide more details on the main contractor behind the proposed Bangi-Putrajaya highway.
“We are now looking into four other highway proposals besides Bangi-Putrajaya,” he said.
Among the proposed highways, Izham said one linking Klang to Kuala Lumpur had also been suggested to the state government.
“The highway aims to disperse traffic along the Federal Highway,” he said, without giving any further details on the Klang-Kuala Lumpur project.
Previously, local residents and assemblymen raised concerns over the proposed Petaling Jaya Dispersal Link (PJD Link) highway project, that aims to alleviate traffic between Damansara and Kinrara.
However, the Pakatan Harapan state government played down the proposed highways, saying that it was still “at an early stage”.
Izham had told the state assembly last year that no green light had been given for the PJD Link project to proceed, and that the traffic impact assessment, social impact assessment and environmental impact reports had not been done yet.
PJD Link has been speculated to replace Kidex, which was cancelled by former menteri besar Mohamed Azmin Ali over technical reasons.