Ekovest expects traffic volume to double with Duke 2

MC30 Jalan Pahang (Refer to location plan),KL. Minister Visit to DUKE Highway Project Site Phase 2 by Ekovest Berhad, in construction, property development and infrastructure concession businesses.

KUALA LUMPUR: Ekovest Bhd sees better revenue from its infrastructure division, saying the traffic volume at its intra-city highway will double once phase two of the Duta-Ulu Klang Expressway (Duke) project is completed by end-August.

Managing director Datuk Seri Lim Keng Cheng said traffic at Duke would easily double from an existing average of 135,000 vehicles per day and at the same time alleviate traffic congestion along Jalan Pahang, especially at the roundabout.

“It’s not really a delay. It’s a four-year project but we hope to complete it in three years.

“We have about a year’s buffer and as of today, we are seven months ahead of schedule,” he told Bernama after Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof visited the Duke Two project site near the entrance to the new Tun Razak Link (TR Link).

As an alternative route, a 9km TR Link connecting Jalan Tun Razak near Kuala Lumpur Hospital to the Sentul Pasar Interchange at Jalan Gombak would open to the traffic beginning 8pm on Tuesday night (tonight).

Lim said the Duke projects, being the group’s main highway infrastructure business, contributed one-third of Ekovest’s total revenue.

The 16.4km Duke Phase 2 project, costing RM1.18bil, is mostly elevated and comprise the TR link and Sri Damansara Link, which will be connected to the existing Duke One.

The existing Duke 1, built at a cost of RM980mil, is a 19km tolled highway which provided connectivity to the East-West route of northern Kuala Lumpur (KL), connecting the New Klang Valley Expressway in west KL to the KL-Karak Highway in the north and the Middle Ring Road Two in the east.

Meanwhile, Ekovest’s concession for Duke Phase 3, a 32km highway also known as Setiawangsa-Pantai Expressway, is under construction at a cost of RM3.9bil and comes with a concession period of 53 years, connecting Taman Melati and the Sprint Highway via Kerinci Link. - Bernama