PETALING JAYA: Bangi MP Ong Kian Ming has urged the government to provide more details on the private sector proposals it approved to build three new highways around the Klang Valley.
Works minister Fadillah Yusof said last week the government had approved in principle the construction of the Petaling Jaya Dispersal Link (PJD Link), the Bangi-Putrajaya Expressway (BPE) and the Kuala Lumpur Northern Dispersal Expressway (KL NODE).
In a statement today, Ong directed several questions to the public-private partnership unit (Ukas) at the prime minister’s department, including the estimated cost of construction for each of the highways and the amount of government grants allocated to them.
The former deputy international trade and industry minister also questioned the identity of the concessionaires for each of these highways and whether they were selected through an open tender process.
“If the open tender method was not chosen, what are the qualifications of these concession companies that enabled them to be appointed by Ukas to implement these highway projects?” he asked.
“Do these concession companies have the experience and a strong track record to give Ukas confidence that they will be able to implement these projects well?
“What are the terms and conditions in the concession agreement, including the toll rate?”
The DAP MP also questioned whether the toll rates would be increased within a stipulated time and the compensation to be paid by the government if the toll rate was not increased.
He also asked the works ministry for public access to traffic flow studies that have been done as evidence that the highways can reduce traffic congestion in the areas involved.
Stressing that the proposed highways will have a long-term impact on the landscape, way of life, and rate of development in the areas involved, Ong said such projects should be approved only after transparent information disclosure and open public discourse.