Its development is to assist and relieve the worsening site visitors congestion, by offering another route for highway customers
by NURUL SUHAIDI
THE new West Coast Expressway (WCE) is about to enhance different present highways, giving extra choices for highway customers particularly in assuaging site visitors congestion throughout peak seasons.
Somewhat than being remoted initiatives, new highways are sometimes designed to combine with and improve the prevailing transportation infrastructure.
Within the case of WCE, it’s designed to enhance present highways that are the North-South Expressway (Plus), South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE), New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE), New North Klang Straits Bypass (NNKSB), Kuala Selangor Expressway (Latar) and Shah Alam Expressway (Kesas) with a view to maximise its protection and offers highway customers extra choices.
In accordance with WCE CEO Lyndon Alfred Felix, the development of WCE is to assist and relieve the worsening site visitors congestion.
There are usually not many adjustments within the alignments of the prevailing highways however as an alternative, there are various routes to divert the site visitors for highway customers.
“Particularly in Klang Valley, highways are normally congested nearly to a breaking level.
“As a freeway group, we all the time contemplate ourselves as complementing one another, by no means competing with one another,” he stated in an interview with The Malay- sian Reserve (TMR).
By rigorously planning and coordinating between new and present roads, transportation authorities can create a extra environment friendly, inter-connected and sturdy community for the good thing about all customers.
Upon its completion, WCE will interconnect with Latar at KM0 Ijok flyover, providing another path to the north for Klang Valley commuters.
In response to its affect on the Latar freeway, its COO Ahmad Fuad Ahmad Shahimi stated WCE is poised to carry a optimistic affect on the prevailing alignment of Latar in the best way it’ll scale back site visitors congestion and result in smoother site visitors circulate.
“It should scale back site visitors congestion on present highways and federal routes as a few of will probably be diverted to WCE.
“It will result in smoother site visitors circulate and probably lower commuting time for individuals travelling between cities, particularly throughout peak hours,” he advised TMR.
The Latar-WCE connection can even present a supporting various to journey to the north, which was beforehand supplied by and accessible solely through the Plus freeway.
“Past that, commuters can even have the ability to traverse with ease from west to east and vice versa through the Kuala Lumpur Outer Ring (KLORR) upon its full completion with its many ‘arteries’ or expressways,” he added.
In accordance with Ahmad Fuad, because the freeway group, Latar promotes and facilitates technical discussions with all native builders within the Latar neighborhood to enhance connectivity to WCE and different main highways.
He stated since its initiation, Latar has been conscious that WCE initiatives shall be related to it.
“Due to this fact, even earlier than the mission commenced, we had been actively supporting the event by developing the hyperlink (fly-over) to WCE for the reason that starting of
Latar growth, and lengthy earlier than WCE began its development,” he added.
Whereas present highways would possibly serve totally different functions or cater to particular forms of site visitors, your complete WCE with 21 interchanges will present comfort to customers to plan and journey extra effectively.
Alongside the Latar expressway, primarily based on the mission plan, the Ijok Interchange shall be fed into WCE, linking to townships like Lumut and Taiping in Perak.
“Making the most of the comfort and strategic connectivity of Latar to main routes and cities, there are lots of extra builders coming to construct new interchanges alongside it,” Ahmad Fuad stated.
He added that presently, the Latar staff can also be working carefully with Eco World Growth Group Bhd for an upcoming interchange highway between Eco Grandeur and Latar.
In the meantime, WCE is alleged to spice up financial growth inside the adjoining hall, from Banting, Klang, Puncak Alam, Rawang, Ijok, Kuala Selangor, Tanjong Karang and Sabak Bernam to the higher space of KL and Shah Alam.
For any highway infrastructure mission, sustaining a excessive commonplace throughout and after development is pivotal to make sure its longevity, security and environment friendly efficiency.
As a consequence of that, every freeway development mission has to undergo due course of, testing the feasibility and viability, and should get hold of approval from the affected communities.
As for WCE, Felix stated to make sure its security and excessive requirements, its engineering staff has undergone the method of floor remedy and consolidation to make sure the expressway is constructed on stable land.
“Within the context of WCE, our problem is that we’re a coastal freeway, so the bottom may be very mushy.
“When the bottom is mushy, you could possibly have a state of affairs the place the bottom begins to sink,” Felix stated.
He added that the method of guaranteeing the land settles and floor remedy takes about 12 to 18 months to consolidate.
In the meantime, former Malaysian Freeway Authority (LLM) DG Datuk Seri Aziz Abdullah, who was concerned in highway infrastructure implementation, applauded WCE and believed that the mission is complementary and will carry a optimistic affect to alleviate the site visitors situation within the nation.
“Our site visitors retains growing 12 months by 12 months, and highways will quickly attain their full day by day capability. When this occurs, highway customers want alternate options, in any other case the state of affairs will solely worsen,” he advised TMR.
He additionally inspired the privatisation of extra highways and infrastructure initiatives to permit the federal government to focus extra on rural developments.
“For my part, it’s a good coverage. If it’s a good mission, why not permit the personal sector to finance and oversee it so long as the mission is viable and advantages the general public,” he stated.
Nonetheless, he highlighted the need of correctly sustaining and sustaining each the brand new and the prevailing routes, as taxpayers are paying the tolls and so they have the fitting to snug roads.
As of June 2023, 4 WCE sections and interchanges have been opened and are accessible for the general public from Hutan Melintang to Taiping Selatan.
WCE is seeking to open 4 extra sections particularly the SKVE, Banting, Assam Jawa and Taiping Selatan sections by the tip of this 12 months.
As soon as totally accomplished, it’s anticipated to spice up financial progress and surrounding developments.
The connectivity supplied can even stimulate the expansion of smaller cities alongside the route.
- This text first appeared in The Malaysian Reserve weekly print version
