By Jegathisan Sivanesan onSabah
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Alexander (third left) during his visit to the road upgrading project near Penampang.
KOTA KINABALU (April 20): The Donggongon-Tambunan road upgrade project is expected to be completed next year.
Works Minister Dato Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi said this federal project, which was approved under Rolling Plan-2 (RP2), Eleventh Malaysia Plan (RMK-11) with a RM299.76 million allocation, has recorded a 13.6 percent progress since it was initiated on October 25, 2022.
Alexander said once the works are complete, it will improve the quality of federal roads from the ITCC mall intersection to the Datuk Panglima Banting road intersection in Penampang, by increasing the roads’ Level of Service (LOS) from LOS E to at least LOS C during peak hours.
He said the upgrading is expected to save up to 30 minutes of travel time and help smoothen traffic congestion by bettering the main network from Kota Kinabalu to Tambunan and providing alternative routes to Papar and Sindumin.
The scope of this project includes upgrading Jalan Penampang Bypass and Jalan Penampang-Tambunan from ITCC to the Penampang District Police Headquarters from a four-lane dual carriageway to a six-lane, 2.5-kilometre dual carriageway.
It also involves the upgrading of the road from the IPD Penampang intersection to the Jalan Datuk Panglima Banting intersection from a two-lane single carriageway to a 1.6-kilometre, four-lane dual carriageway.
In addition, Jalan Penampang Lama will also see an upgrade from a four-lane dual carriageway to a six-lane dual carriageway along a 0.8-kilometre stretch.
Aside from that, the project involves the construction of a 580-metre elevated interchange at the Sigah roundabout, including two special U-turns under this structure.
Two 30-metre precast concrete bridges over Sungai Kibabaig, three metered U-turns at two strategic locations and a pedestrian overpass at an identified location are also planned for construction.
“The Ministry of Works hopes that the project manager, Sabah Public Works Department and the contractors involved will work together to sharpen the aspects of project management in improving work performance, so that this project can be completed according to the quality and cost specifications, in line with the MYJalan programme aspirations and the Works Minister 2025 new year address towards zero sick projects,” he told a press conference after a visit to the project site today.
Also present was State Assistant Works Minister Datuk Limus Jury.
Nanta also said the project had previously faced delays and was granted an Extension of Time (EOT) on two occasions.
“We found that the main issue affecting the project’s progress was land acquisition, which also involved costs. During discussions, we’ve identified a way forward, and I’ve instructed that a coordination meeting be called with the relevant ministries,” he said.
Nanta said the land acquisition difficulties had caused constraints on other construction works, including utility relocation, and he hopes the project can now proceed more smoothly.
“The contractor is not the problem — as I mentioned, it’s the land acquisition and utility-related issues, so we’re helping them resolve these so they can carry out the work according to schedule,” he said.
Nanta added that the project aligns with the core values of Malaysia MADANI, namely Wellbeing and Sustainability, which focus on enhancing mobility and accessibility for the people through a high-quality, safe and comfortable federal road network.
