How can Kidex be scrapped with MBPJ still considering it? asks developer

(The Malay Mail) – Allegations that the Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) has been scrapped because of an unfavourable assessment report is untrue, its developer said, insisting that the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) is still studying the viability of the highway.

Kidex Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Nor Idrus said that MBPJ councillor Lee Suet Sen was wrong to have said that the local council had rejected the highway’s incorporation into the city blueprint as no final decision had been made on the matter.

“Kidex Sdn Bhd (KSB), wish to state that MBPJ has not communicated with us as to the decision not to include the highway in the local draft plan.

“KSB has already refuted the claim that the project has very little benefit for the city of Petaling Jaya and our report is now being considered by MBPJ,” he said in an emailed statement to Malay Mail Online last night.

Any cancellation of a federal project like Kidex should be made by an official spokesman and not by one councillor to the press, Nor Idrus added.

“Normally an official spokesperson for MBPJ would be making an announcement of a matter of such seriousness and we have not been informed whether the statement is an official communiqué by MBPJ.

“Kidex, meanwhile, shall at all times follow the requirements of the law and will pursue the necessary submissions as may be required for the inclusion of the highway in the local plan,” he said, adding that the Selangor Economic Action Council (MTES) had a final say on the matter.

MBPJ councillor Lee had said that the report by MDS Traffic Planners and Consultants showed a lot of problems and discrepancies related to the proposed highway, which is being promoted as a solution to traffic woes in Petaling Jaya city.

Construction of Kidex, however, cannot start unless it is made a part of the council’s blueprint as required under the Town Country and Planning Act.

The review by MDS concluded that the Kidex project suffers from major shortcomings with regards to its planning process as well as its potential impact on residents.

This included a poorly executed social impact assessment, encroachment on homes and public buildings like schools and hospitals, and the failure of the developer, Kidex Sdn Bhd, to properly address objections and concerns of the affected residents.

MDS added that studies carried out by the developer itself showed that Petaling Jaya is “not as congested” as it is made out to be, and that whatever traffic flow problems on the existing Damansara-Puchong highway (LDP) should be dealt with separately instead of hinging on Kidex.

Kidex Sdn Bhd has said it has fulfilled all the pre-conditions stipulated in its concession agreement with the federal government, ahead of the deal’s expiry on February 15.

But the developer for the controversial RM2.42 billion highway said it is prepared to apply for further extension of its concession agreement deadline, as the Selangor government has yet to approve the project and the various technical reports submitted by the company.

Among the areas that could be affected by the project are Tropicana Mall, SS2 Mall, Rothman’s traffic lights, Section 14, Amcorp Mall, Hilton Petaling Jaya, Tun Hussein Onn Eye Hospital, Jalan Templer roundabout, Taman Datuk Harun, Taman Medan Baru and Bandar Kinrara.