BRINCHANG: The Cameron Highlands -Simpang Pulai road has taken quite a beating over the years from heavy lorries carrying timber – and the damage wrought is extensive, said the Regional Environmental Awareness Cameron Highlands
(REACH) non-governmental organisation (NGO).
REACH president Ramakrishnan Ramasamy said the timber lorries, which operate from logging sites in Lojing and Gua Musang, have been plying the route frequently, causing considerable wear to the road.
"Some of the timber lorries are tandem-axle vehicles, which are much heavier than single axle lorries, and increase the pavement damage over time.
"In view of the badly-deteriorating soil erosion at Section 44 of the Simpang Pulai-Cameron Highlands road, the authorities should block the movement of all heavy lorries with timber (there)," he told the News Straits Times.
Ramakrishnan said the timber lorries are, in fact, infringing a Cameron Highlands District Council (MDCH) 1995 by-law which banned timber lorries from using local roads from Km64.96 in Tapah to Km86.31 at the Blue Valley border.
He said the lorries are therefore blatantly disregarding an existing law and posing a serious problem for the maintenance of road safety on the Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai road.
"The timber lorries are also a hazard to road users, (with driving conditions) aggravated by steep downhill slopes and sharp curves.
"On steep uphill gradients, where no climbing lane is provided, the slow-moving heavy vehicle causes traffic disruption," he said.
Ramakrishnan urged the authorities such as the Road Transport Department (RTD) and the local district council to view the issue of heavy vehicle overloading seriously and to leave nothing to chance.
He said they must prosecute operators who frequently overload to the fullest extent of the law.
Ramakrishnan also pointed out that the timber lorries could use the East-West Highway, also known as the Gerik-Jeli Highway, as an alternative, but the operators are taking the Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai road as a short-cut to maximise profits.
His comments came in the wake of a statement by the Perak Public Utilities, Infrastructure, Energy and Water Committee last week.
Its chairman, Datuk Zainol Fadzi Paharuddin, said the Simpang Pulai-Cameron Highlands road is safe despite a recent “soil collapse” at Section 44.
He was reported as saying that the Public Works Department's (PWD) Slope Engineering Branch confirmed that the stretch is safe despite appearing dangerous from a distance.
A landslide occurred at Section 44 in 2014, and was repaired in Dec 2015.
The slope at Section 44 has remained exposed and barren for many years, despite several slope stabilisation and erosion control efforts by the PWD, including the use of vegetation.