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ISKANDAR PUTERI – The Johor state government plans to build a 350m covered pedestrian walkway on the Malaysian side of the Causeway, at a cost of RM30 million (S $ 9.9 million), a senior Johor official said.
Once completed, the project would make it more convenient for the hundreds of people crossing the overland link connecting Johor Baru to Woodlands, the Johor (exco) minister of state told the Public Works Committee on Sunday (September 13). , Infrastructure and Transportation. quoted by Bernama news agency.
Before the coronavirus pandemic led to the general closure of the Causeway, more than 300,000 commuters used the land link on a daily basis, including some 100,000 commuters to work in Singapore.
Most people used motorcycles, cars, and buses to cross what are considered the busiest border crossings in the world.
But hundreds of people were often seen crossing the Causeway every day to get to the other side faster due to traffic jams.
Malaysia’s federal government doubled its initial allocation of RM 15 million after the walkway was redesigned, with escalators and air conditioning, Mohd Solihan told reporters on the sidelines of the Johor state assembly proceedings.
“The construction will involve the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Works as the Johor Causeway is maintained by the Malaysian Highway Authority,” he said.
Mr. Mohd Solihan did not say if the covered walkway would be built on pedestrian paths on the existing 1 km road link, or if a new structure would be added to the side of the link.
“The 350-meter distance ends at the border with Singapore. However, for Singapore, I’m not sure how long the distance will be,” Bernama quoted. “For our part of the route, the construction cost is through the Ministry of Finance and its implementation is borne by the Ministry of Works.”
According to Mohd Solihan, pedestrians are prohibited on the Johor road, but the authorities have not taken any action against them.
He said officials from the Singaporean consulate in Johor Baru with whom he met had expressed interest in the project, Bernama reported.
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