By Karen Bong
KUCHING, April 1: Kuching South City Council (MBKS) will raise the need to repair or resurface the damaged Airport Road to Public Works Department (JKR) Sarawak even though the maintenance of protocol roads does not fall under the council’s jurisdiction.
Mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng gave this assurance following a complaint by a netizen that the Airport Road is “getting very bumpy” and called for urgent repair to be carried out.
“Not all roads fall under the jurisdiction of the council, as protocol roads fall under the Federal government jurisdiction, which is JKR.
“However, no matter which jurisdiction the roads belonged to, I believe issues on road maintenance should be handed over to the council to manage because the public will always direct the issue to the local government.
“The public cannot differentiate which roads belong to which authority, and most people would think road maintenance would fall under the council’s responsibility,” he noted during his ShallWeeTalk live session with the community today.
Despite that, Wee reiterated that the council would continue to assist the public in highlighting their complaints and problems to the relevant authorities.
On the traffic congestion getting into Kuching International Airport (KIA), Wee said the council would bring this up to Malaysia Airport Berhad (MAB).
“Roads within airports are under MAB’s jurisdiction. That’s why there are traffic enforcement and police handling and monitoring the area.
“The airport has always been very congested. It is something they should look into considering the carpark is not that full, and perhaps there is a need to improve the design of the pickup area (to improve vehicle flow),” he said.
Wee noted that the congestion could be frustrating, especially for those rushing to the airport.
Meanwhile, road-related complaints can be directed to JKR Roadcare at 011-70171777 or 011-70172777. — DayakDaily
