Over RM400 million to repair slopes along federal roads nationwide - Fadillah

YAN - A total of 327 cases of slope failures along federal roads nationwide have been identified, and will be repaired with a total allocation estimated at more than RM400 million, said Senior Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.

He said most of the federal roads involved were in the east coast states, apart from Negeri Sembilan, Selangor and Perak.

"Thus far, we have repaired the slopes at 121 locations out of 327 locations. Some have been completed, some are still under construction, while others are in planning, depending on how serious the case is.

"There are small-scale cases which are partially completed, while the medium ones are in the planning and the large ones may need a longer time for us to complete,” he told reporters after inspecting the FT252 Jalan Gunung Jerai slope repair work, here today.

He said the large-scale and serious slope collapse locations include Cameron Highlands, Jerantut, Kuala Lipis and Bentong in Pahang; Kuala Klawang and Genting Peras in Negeri Sembilan and Simpang Pulai in Perak.

Fadillah said in Kedah, a total of 12 cases of slope failures occurred along the federal road, namely Jalan Gunung Jerai, and the state road under the supervision of the Public Works Department (PWD), namely Jalan Kuala Kedah, are currently being repaired, with most of the work already completed.

He added that there were seven similar cases in Jalan Gunung Jerai and five in Jalan Kuala Kedah, with a total cost to repair around RM15 million.

"If we look at Jalan Gunung Jerai the repair work is quite complex, not just rebuilding the slope but installing netting to prevent further collapse and protect the roads. Hopefully, this project will reduce the risk of further occurrences,” he said.

According to Fadillah, several similar cases have been identified on other federal roads in the state, and repair work is being planned involving an allocation of around RM6 million.

Commenting on the recent landslide incident at Taman Bukit Permai 2, Ampang, Selangor, he said that the repair work was under the jurisdiction of the local authority and the state government, while his ministry through PWD, only provided necessary expertise and advice. - BERNAMA