Latest news with #roadwidening
Free Malaysia Today
23-07-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Johari wants review of stall demolition plan, Zaliha says don't worry
Titiwangsa MP Johari Ghani called for the road-widening project to be put on hold while federal territories minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said DBKL would meet the stall owners soon. KUALA LUMPUR : Titiwangsa MP Johari Ghani has urged Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to review the planned demolition of nine stalls in Desa Pandan to allow for a road-widening project. He said the road involved was just an inner road while the traders there had been operating legally for years, Berita Harian reported. 'They are licensed, and this is their source of income. So when DBKL came to demolish their stalls the other day, they were very shocked,' said Johari, who is also the plantation and commodities minister. 'Why demolish these stalls to widen a road that isn't a main road?' he asked, calling for the project to be put on hold while DBKL holds talks with stakeholders. Johari also asked if 60 other stalls further down the road would also have to make way for a road-widening project one day. 'Don't worry, we'll help the traders' Separately, federal territories minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said DBKL had been engaging with the nine stall owners since November, acknowledging that they were licensed. She said some of them had already agreed to move while others refused to budge. Zaliha said the traders did not need to worry about losing their source of income as the federal territories department and DBKL would ensure that they have an alternative location for their stalls. 'We are supposed to meet them again this month to discuss where they will be moved to. This is part of our 'Lestari Niaga' project (to upgrade and beautify food stalls in KL) so I think they don't have to worry. 'We will do our best to help them and place them elsewhere, while giving them the facilities needed to open their stalls again,' she said when met by reporters at SMK Cochrane here. Zaliha also said that the road widening project needed to be expedited and was necessary for public use. 'I have asked the federal territories department and DBKL to meet the traders immediately and give them several options for new places to operate.' DBKL previously said the hawkers were told to vacate the site on Jan 15, but a final notice was only issued on July 4. During an operation to demolish the stalls on Tuesday, a man got into a brief stand-off with DBKL officers, brandishing a parang and shouting profanities at the officers. He was calmed down by members of the public before being arrested by the police.
Malay Mail
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
KL mayor denies bias in removal of hawker stalls for road project
KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 — Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Seri Maimunah Mohd Sharif said there were no elements of bias in the treatment of local hawkers and vendors in Desa Pandan. Her remarks follow public criticism and a recent enforcement operation to remove illegal hawker stalls as part of a planned road-widening project in the area. She said the authorities had taken action based on public complaints and data collected since 2017 regarding proposals to widen roads in the area. Maimunah added that she had personally contacted Titiwangsa MP Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani on the matter. Johari had earlier questioned whether Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) needed to demolish nine hawker stalls in Desa Pandan to make way for the expansion. She said the matter had also been discussed with DBKL and that some alternative solutions had been proposed. 'We may visit the stall owners tomorrow to assess the situation on the ground. 'As for claims of bias, we are not. Our actions are based on data, suggestions, and plans that have been in place for some time. The plan for the road was proposed back in 2017 after public complaints about the area being too tight and congested. 'Studies were conducted, and alternatives were considered for both road users and pedestrians. Since then, we've held four meetings with the local community,' Maimunah told reporters after a visit to the Kuala Lumpur Command Centre near Bukit Jalil today. 'We acknowledge there was initial resistance. There are currently nine stalls involved, and if anything needs to be done, we will discuss it with them. 'Again, we are not biased. We're simply looking at it from a technical and data-driven perspective, including traffic impact studies and feasibility assessments for the road. 'Let's see how things unfold. If there's no resolution, we're prepared to return to the drawing board,' she said. On July 15, Bernama reported that a man was arrested after going on a rampage and swinging a machete at enforcement officers during an operation to demolish illegal structures in Desa Pandan. A video of the man acting aggressively towards the police went viral. Yesterday, Izat Saini @ Zaini, 43, pleaded not guilty in the Magistrates' Court to a charge of using criminal force by brandishing a machete to intimidate public servants.
BBC News
10-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Cancelled A12 widening work leaves homeowner 'gutted'
A woman who lost her home through compulsory purchase says she is "absolutely gutted" a proposed road widening scheme will now not go Strathie, who is in her 80s, had lived at her home in Kelvedon, Essex, near the A12 for 21 years. The £1.2bn project to widen the A12 near Chelmsford was cancelled due to costs, the government revealed."I am absolutely gutted because they have completely messed our lives up," said Ms Strathie - who now lives in Maldon. "We lived in our bungalow for 21 years and we had just one neighbour who lived there for 51 years," Ms Strathie added."My husband ran a business from our property and now everything has come to an end, and they are not going to do the A12." The scheme was set to widen a 15-mile (24km) stretch of road from Chelmsford to the A120 at Marks Tey. Rishi Sunak's government approved the project in January 2024, but the current government cancelled it, accusing the previous Conservative government of promising infrastructure projects with "no plan to pay for them".Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander had told the BBC: "Only those projects that are fully costed, affordable and will deliver a return on taxpayers' money will be given the green light under my watch."Ms Strathie added: "We now live in another house in Maldon, and we are not settled."My husband had a heart attack just after Christmas this year through the stress."If they are not going to do the A12 then give us our home back, where we are happy."Ms Strathie said she would "not give up" trying to move back to her property in Kelvedon. In an interview with BBC Radio Essex, Dame Priti Patel, Conservative MP for Witham in Essex, said the decision had "been a long time in the making"."This will have implications for the whole of the county," she said."We are the economic powerhouse and backbone of the British economy."Talking about the government's decision to stop the project, she said: "They are happy to proceed with the A66 and as a result of this I have written quite a scathing letter to Heidi Alexander."In response to Ms Strathie's story, she said: "I would be more than happy to meet with her and try and help in whatever capacity I can."This goes right through my constituency. There are a handful of constituents that have been heavily affected." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
08-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Transport secretary cancels A12 widening scheme in Essex
A scheme to widen a road used by about 90,000 vehicles a day will no longer go ahead due to a lack of funds, the government has announced. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has cancelled the works planned for the A12 near Chelmsford, Essex, as well as the A47 between Wansford and Sutton scheme in Cambridgeshire. Alexander added the previous Conservative government promised infrastructure projects with "no plan to pay for them" and that it was up to the government to make sustainable decisions on future transport projects. She added: "That means no more black holes and no more busted budgets, no more promising the moon on a stick - those days are over." The A12 scheme was a £1.2bn project to widen a 15-mile (24km) stretch of the road from Chelmsford to the said the scheme had to be cancelled because it was one of the most expensive upcoming projects."Only those projects that are fully costed, affordable and will deliver a return on taxpayers' money will be given the green light under my watch," she also announced the decision not to progress with the A47 Wansford to Sutton scheme. National Highways planned to make a 1.6-mile (2.5km) section of the A47 between Wansford and Sutton in Cambridgeshire into a dual said: "We are already investing over £500m on improvements to the A47 corridor, with work to dual sections in Norfolk already under way, but it's just not feasible to support further investment at this time."I understand some communities will feel frustrated, but by taking this decision, we are rebalancing funds towards those areas that for too long haven't had the infrastructure investment they have deserved."Alexander added: "The north and Midlands will now get a higher proportion of strategic road spend than we've seen in the last five years. "I believe that's the right and fair thing to do." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
08-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
A66 road dualling approved again after spending review
A plan to dual the A66 has been approved again, a year after the government put the scheme on project to widen the road, which runs from Penrith to Scotch Corner, was approved by the previous Conservative government, but when Labour won the election last July it put the plan on hold to review a "black hole" in the public Department for Transport (DfT) has now confirmed the work in a £92bn national package announced on Campbell-Savours, Labour MP for Penrith and Solway, said: "This was one of the biggest road projects in the UK and it's frustrating that it's taken so long to get an answer, but I'm really pleased it's gone our way. We've fought hard for this." The DfT said the amount of HGV traffic on the A66, which also has single lane sections in County Durham, was more than twice the national average for a road of this added the widening would shave up to 12 minutes off journeys and boost the economy by speeding up access to other routes such as the M6 and A1 (M), as well as to ports such as Stranraer in south-west Scotland.A timeline for the work to be carried out is yet to be Farron, the LibDem MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, had joined forces with the former Conservative Prime Minister and MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire Rishi Sunak to press for the work to be carried out on the road which crosses their said the connection to other routes made "so much sense for the economy" and the work would improve safety on the road."For those people who are most concerned locally about the loss of life on the A66, I think for them and for me this is a moment of great relief," he said. 'More traffic' fear The plan to dual the A66 had been subject of a failed legal challenge by Transport Action Network (TAN).The group believes the work to upgrade 18 miles of single carriageway offered "poor" value for money and would increase Todd, TAN's director, said the project would cost "more than it will ever deliver in economic benefits"."It represents another set back for the government's growth agenda. The only thing that this will grow is more traffic and more HGVs on our road, making them less safe."This will lead to nearly three million tons of carbon - it completely contradicts the government's drive for decarbonisation and nature protection."But Farron said the scheme would benefit local people and ease traffic."What really peaks carbon emissions is when you have thousands and thousands of vehicle, including 25% of them being freight, stood still belching out fumes because of all the traffic hold-ups because of the accidents and that's one of the reasons why I think that case fell."Campbell-Savours said there was "nothing environmentally friendly" about the current congestion."For many of us it's exactly about better junctions, safer junctions and a road system that doesn't see Penrith getting gnarled up every weekend," he DfT has announced a wider £92bn investment across England, including upgrading road and rail networks and extending the £3 bus cap. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
