S'gor against Damansara highway alignment

The Selangor government has rejected the proposed alignment of the Damansara-Shah Alam Elevated Expressway (Dash) that would cut across the neighbourhood of Damansara Perdana, in view of strong objection from the residents.

At a protest rally which drew more than 300 residents at Damansara Perdana today, Selangor exco for tourism, consumer affairs and environment Elizabeth Wong (left) announced that Project Lintasan Kota Holdings Sdn Bhd’s (Perlintas) application for the alignment of the highway has been turned down pending further public consultation.

Wong said contrary to Perlintas’ claims, a large number of residents opposed the highway.

“The day before their presentation to the Selangor government, I got the reports from Perlintas that said that only two persons in Damansara Perdana are against the project.

“I then rang (Anti-Dash working committee chairperson) David Chai to ask if this was true. On Thursday, he gave me a petition with 2,500 signatures from residents who say no to this project,” Wong said.

As a result, said Wong, Selangor MB Khalid Ibrahim agreed that the state government could not approve the alignment for now.

Dash not in local plan

The proposed 17-metre tall highway, which links New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) directly to the Penchala Link, will run along Jalan PJU 8/2 and would be close to many condominiums and shophouses.

The project, once completed, will allow motorists to bypass the Damansara and Duta toll plazas along the NKVE, which are both prone to traffic buildup during rush hour.

The Economic Planning Unit under federal government and Malaysia Highway Authority (LLM) have reportedly given the project the go-ahead.

However, residents are concerned with potential noise and air pollution, traffic congestion in their local roads and the depreciation of the value of their homes from the eyesore the highway will pose to more than 20,000 locals in the affected areas.

The protest today also received support from the Orang Asli community from Desa Temuan and Mutiara Damansara, whose settlements will also be affected by the alignment.

Wong added that the highway was not in the Petaling Jaya city council (MBPJ) local plan when the latter was approved a year ago.

She pointed out that the highway also offers no benefit to the residents in the area as its proposed entrance is at the NKVE side, even though the alignment would be at their expense.

‘Residents not consulted’
 
Ritze Perdana 2 condominium residents’ association chairman, who only wished to be known as Yap, said LLM has never consulted the residents over the alignment.

“Even the state government had no prior knowledge about this. How could it be? We are very upset of (the contractor’s) behaviour,” he said.

The residents plan to submit a fresh petition to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to air their concerns.

Meanwhile, MIC secretary general S Murugesan, the local BN facilitator, said that he supports the residents’ position and will help them to highlight the issue to Najib.