Damaged road needs serious attention
TAWAU: Kukusan assemblywoman Rina Jainal hopes the state government, Public Works Department (PWD) and related parties will give serious attention to Tanjung Batu Tengah Road/Hilltop after about two months of delay because it involves the safety of the public.
She said last December, the Kukusan constituency office received complaints from the public regarding potholes and landslide at Tanjung Batu Tengah Road/Hilltop.
"As a result of the monitoring done, there was indeed a landslide at the bottom of the paved road," she said yesterday.
Rina said the road is the main route for residents in the surrounding area, including vehicles carrying school students there. It is estimated that hundreds of vehicles will pass through the area everyday.
Regarding the collapse, she said there was an accident that caused a motorcyclist to slip due to failure to avoid the hole, causing him to fall and get injured.
Not wanting to see a repeat of such accident, Rina said she immediately forwarded the matter to PWD Tawau in December last year for further action as it requires a detailed investigation (the extent of the damage) before the repair work is done.
“At that time, I was informed that PWD was waiting for the allocation that they had applied for before,” she said.
“I also contacted the concessionaire to ensure that this problem is resolved immediately.
“I understand that the concessionaire has also sent information to PWD and is waiting for approval from the state government, but until now no response has been received."
In addition, heavy rains and floods are now frequent in the area, allowing the situation to worsen at the bottom of the paved road causing the road to 'hang', she said.
Rina also received public complaints regarding the temporary settlement measures made by the concessionaire, namely by installing warning tapes and cones as warning signs to road users which is considered inadequate.
She said many people requested that it is good if the area is closed or marked with a larger cone to prevent road users from slipping and getting into accidents.