SADONG JAYA: The state government will upgrade the coastal road from Kuching to Limbang from two lanes to four lanes to make it more comfortable for road users.
Second Minister of Resource Planning and Environment, Datuk Amar Haji Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said the upgrading would involve the entire existing coastal road from Kuching to Limbang.
“The state government has agreed in principle and we have started with the plan to upgrade the coastal road from two lanes to four lanes,” he said after performing a groundbreaking ceremony of Jemukan Village Expansion Scheme, here, yesterday.
Awang Tengah said he had no details of when the upgrading works would start or whether it would start with the coastal road from Kuching to Sebuyau, but the upgrading would be implemented on the existing road from Kuching until Limbang.
He said the upgrading works would also involve the construction of many new bridges to cross rivers, but he did not have the details, including the overall cost because the planning had just started.
“The construction of the state’s coastal road started when Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud was still the Chief Minister and it helped to open up many new areas for development,” he said.
On village expansion scheme in the state, Awang Tengah said it was also started by Taib when he was the Chief Minister and the scheme continued until today due to growing population in rural areas.
He said the scheme, to prevent overcrowding in villages, provided housing lots complete with infrastructure facilities like roads, drains, electricity and water supply.
“Housing lots are given to allow residents to build their own houses because there were cases of four families living in one house,” he said.
He said the state government, under the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP) approved an allocation of RM174.84 million for the expansion schemes of 34 villages across the state.
He said this included Jemukan Village Expansion Scheme which would provide 215 residential lots within a13-hectare area at total cost of RM7.65 million to be borne by the government; and the project was expected to be completed in March, 2018.
“The project is so popular that during the mid review of the 11MP, we will seek for more funds to be able to run more schemes applied by the rural communities,” said Awang Tengah.
Meanwhile at the event, Sadong Jaya State Assemblyman Aidil Lariwoo applied to the state government to expand the scheme to Kampung Iboi Laut and Kampung Pelandok Laut, the polulations of which have increased.
