SHAH ALAM, Feb 9 — A group in support of the Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) questioned today the legitimacy of an independent review that cast doubt on the viability of the RM2.42 billion highway project.
Section 5 Residents Association president Mohd Rafiq Fazaldin said it was dubious that the review by MDS Traffic Planners and Consultants for such a large-scale project could be completed in just a couple of months.
“My only concern is that this is a RM2.4 billion project; how can you finish the report conclusively in such a short time?” Rafiq told reporters here today after handing over a memorandum in support to the Kidex project to Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali, who was not in attendance but represented by his private secretary Hilman Idham.
“I have done a research paper before. Ours is only about RM700,000 but it takes us eight months to finish a job. These people finish it in two to three months,” he added.
MDS' assessment recently concluded that the Kidex project suffers from major shortcomings with regards to its planning process as well as its potential impact on residents.
The memorandum in support of Kidex was signed by 18 non-governmental organisations (NGOs), including the National Public Transportation Users Association, the Petaling Jaya South Taxi Drivers Association, and the Residents Association from Section 3 and Section 5.
The memorandum urged the Selangor government to approve the Kidex project to help alleviate the worsening traffic congestion in PJ, which the group claimed was affecting the transit times of emergency response units.
“For the ambulance, without the jam it takes 10 minutes to arrive but with the jam, it takes 45 minutes. What happen[s] to the life?” Section 3 Residents Association president Shamsuddin Hassan told reporters.
“This is not a just a question about the people, it is also a question of public transportation, it’s a question of the ambulance and also the firemen,” Rafiq said.
National Public Transportation Users Association chairman Arjit Johl said although anti-Kidex proponents had a valid point on public transport, he claimed that traffic congestion would still occur without additional roads.
“We are championing public transport, but we realise that 700,000 new cars are coming on the road next year. Government statistics, not mine. And if you don’t increase roads, your roads will become a carpark,” Arjit said.
“So we want to encourage public transport, but public transport on which roads? Taxis use roads; taxis don’t fly. Busses use roads,” he added.
The memorandum also called for the state government to ignore “a group of people” who purportedly intend to foil the Kidex project for their own political agenda.
“The Say No To Kidex (SNTK) should form a group to oversee the implementation, instead of becoming a naysayers. No point just saying no,” Rafiq said.
Kidex Sdn Bhd has maintained it has fulfilled all the pre-conditions stipulated in its concession agreement with the federal government, ahead of the deal’s expiry on February 15.
But the developer for the controversial RM2.42 billion expressway said it is prepared to apply for a further extension of its concession agreement deadline, as the Selangor government has yet to approve the project and the various technical reports submitted by the company.
Among the areas that could be affected by the project are Tropicana Mall, SS2 Mall, Rothman’s traffic lights, Section 14, Amcorp Mall, Hilton Petaling Jaya, Tun Hussein Onn Eye Hospital, Jalan Templer roundabout, Taman Datuk Harun, Taman Medan Baru and Bandar Kinrara.
* An earlier version of this story had incorrectly stated Section 5 Residents Association president's name as Mohd Rafiq Sazaldin. The error has since been corrected.
