Plan to widen NSE mooted

ISKANDAR PUTERI: A meeting will be held to discuss the need of expanding the North-South Expressway route between Yong Peng and Skudai in Johor, said Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan (pic).

The Deputy Finance Minister said his ministry would meet Plus Malaysia, the highway concessionaire, this week to get its views on the request to increase the vehicle lanes from four to six.

He added that the request, made by the Johor government before the 14th General Election, was to reduce traffic congestion.

“From Melaka to Seremban, there are already six lanes, and from Seremban to Kuala Lumpur, there are eight lanes.

“(But) when you go to Johor, there are only four lanes, whereas this southern state is one of the larger contributors to the nation’s wealth and income,” he told reporters after the state-level 2023 Budget dialogue in Kota Iskandar, here, yesterday.

Also present at the event were Johor Mentri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi and State Secretary Tan Sri Dr Azmi Rohani.

According to Bernama, Ahmad also said the Federal Government would look into other matters concerning the state, such as health-related issues like hospitals, flood problems and schools in need of repair.

The Pontian MP reminded that this Friday would be the deadline set for the ministry to receive proposals for the 2023 Budget while revealing that the next budget dialogue session would be held in Perak.

Commenting on the cut in constituency allocations for government backbencher MPs, Ahmad said a retreat to discuss the matter would be held on Sunday in Putrajaya.