The two-lane dual carriageway from Taman Kempas Utama to Kampung Maju Jaya before road widening started in 2018. — Courtesy photo
THE long-awaited RM41mil road widening project from Taman Kempas Utama to Kampung Maju Jaya is finally ready.
Johor works, transportation, infrastructure and communications committee chairman Mohamad Fazli Mohamad Salleh said the project involved widening the existing two-lane road into a 2.2km four-lane dual carriageway to ease traffic congestion.
“The project, launched in 2018, was supposed to be completed in 2020 but faced delays and was extended to 2021, before being re-tendered to a new contractor in 2023.
“The main roadworks were physically completed around March and April this year, while remaining works involving the demolition of the old bridge and installation of new street lamps were finalised in August,” he said after launching the road upgrading project.
He said parts of the road were opened earlier to benefit motorists, especially during peak hours.
“We had to open sections of the road earlier as the project took about seven years to complete.
“This is not a record to be proud of, but a valuable lesson for us to improve and strengthen the project implementation process in the future.”
The upgraded route includes street lamps, improved bridges and a better drainage system.
“The bridge was built using the Bebo Arch method, an alternative proposed by the contractor, resulting in time and space savings, as well as cost savings of RM100,000,” he said.
“I hope more contractors will work together with the government to offer innovative solutions that save time, suit conditions and reduce costs,” he said.
Mohamad Fazli added that the Johor Public Works Department (JKR) had faced coordination challenges at the federal level, but stressed that the state government remained committed to improving delivery timelines for future developments.
“We will continue exploring new methods and approaches to ensure upcoming infrastructure projects can be completed ahead of schedule.
“Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi has also challenged us to deliver state projects faster and more efficiently.”
Mohamad Fazli said modern infrastructure and facilities were key in positioning Johor as a developed state by 2030.
