Pasir Gudang to help JKR maintain two highways

Asman (right, in yellow) greeting guests at the MBPG open house.

Pasir Gudang City Council (MBPG) has received an allocation of RM300,000 from Johor government to assist in maintaining Pasir Gudang Highway and the Eastern Dispersal Link (EDL).

Pasir Gudang mayor Datuk Asman Shah Abd Rahman said the allocation from the Johor Mentri Besar’s office would be used to patch up potholes and solve other issues along the two roads.

“The highway and EDL fall under the Federal Government’s purview, but we have signed a memorandum of understanding with Public Works Department (JKR) to help maintain the roads.

“Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi wants the state government to help with any issues affecting the people, including those that fall under the Federal Government’s jurisdiction.

“As such, the allocation was given to MBPG so that we could support JKR in maintaining the roads and ensuring the public’s comfort,” he told reporters during the MBPG Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house.

He said the city council would use the hot in-place recycling (HIPR) pavement rehabilitation method to patch up potholes on the roads.

“We have experimented with the method for over a year along other roads in the district, including areas often used by heavy vehicles.

“We find that the method leads to longer-lasting results compared to other methods.

“This is important as each time work is conducted to fix potholes, there is bound to be traffic congestion.

“We need to reduce the frequency of carrying out such work and this can be achieved by using methods that have longer- lasting results.

“The contractors have also given their commitment to re-patch the potholes for free if they are damaged within a year,” he said.

On a separate matter, Asman said MBPG had approved two applications from residential committees for the implementation of the Social Security Scheme (SKS).

“We have also received applications from several developers and three other residential committees that are keen to have the SKS.

“The SKS was introduced by MBPG to improve safety around landed non-gated-and-guarded residential areas.

“It works the same way as gated-and-guarded housing areas but with several extra benefits.

“The main benefit is that the local council will also be placing artificial intelligence closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras at the main entrance and exit of the area.

“The CCTV cameras are linked to our command centre and can also be monitored by the police, allowing emergencies to be dealt with faster and more smoothly,” he said.

He also welcomed other residential committees to apply for the scheme to improve the overall safety of the district.

StarMetro had earlier reported that MBPG introduced the SKS following reports of safety issues in housing areas.

To apply for the scheme, a committee will need to get agreement from at least 80% of residents living in the specified area.

Under the scheme, residents will only need to pay for the salaries of security officers they employ.

The local council will not receive any fees for the implementation of the SKS.

MBPG will be providing regulations on how the gates are to be placed and built, the lighting system and the guard house, besides placing the CCTV cameras.