KUALA LUMPUR: The concessionaire of the new West Coast Expressway (WCE) and the Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA) will conduct the final rounds of compliance tests on the expressway’s structures on Monday.
WCE Sdn Bhd managing director Datuk Neoh Soon Hiong said after the tests are completed, it would take at least another week before the WCE could be opened.
“The final rounds of compliance tests will be conducted with the help of the Malaysian Highway Authority on Monday. Once these tests are done, both parties will make a decision on whether to open all the expressway packages.
“We will then submit the compliance tests (results) and wait for the WCE’s gazettement, which could take at least a week,” Neoh told the New Straits Times tonight.
He said the concessionaire is still working on adhering to its original deadline of opening the expressway before Hari Raya Aidilfitri on June 5 and 6.
“We are still targeting to open the project before Hari Raya, but it is subject to the completion of final testing on all four packages of the expressway and its gazettement.”
He said the project is nearing completion as far as construction and approvals are concerned.
“At this stage, it is not just about physical aspects (of the project), but the safety requirement tests. Though it is nearing completion, it is still subject to the compliance tests on Monday,” he said.
Fresh questions were recently raised on whether the WCE will open in time for Hari Raya Aidilfitri as promised, following the collapse of a section of the project in Klang on May 4.
The collapse of the 110m section caused water disruption in 65 areas in Klang due to three damaged main pipes under the 223km highway project, which connects Banting, Selangor, to Taiping, Perak.
On May 8, MHA director-general Datuk Aziz Abdullah said that he did not discount the possibility of a diversion along the collapsed route, but stressed that it would depend on the findings of a report on the incident.
However, WCE insisted that it would adhere to the original schedule for opening.
The 223km WCE stretches from Jalan Banting-KLIA (B18) to the Tanjong Karang interchange (93.8km) in Selangor and from Jalan Persekutuan (FR5) in Hutan Melintang to the Changkat Jering Plaza Toll (139.2km) in Perak.
The three packages in Perak covers Hutan Melintang to Teluk Intan (19.1km), Lekir to Changkat Chermin (28km) and Changkat Chermin to Beruas (16.6km).
The Selangor package only involves the northern side of the state.