IPOH: The construction of the West Ipoh Span Expressway (WISE), which connects Gopeng to Kuala Kangsar, will start this year.
Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad said this follows the finalisation of the contents of the concession agreement by the Public-Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) and WISE management last week.
Both parties, he said, are in the process of looking for a suitable date to hold the signing ceremony for the concession agreement.
"I met with the UKAS director-general (Datuk Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar) last Thursday.
"He mentioned that the unit is looking for a suitable date for the concession agreement signing ceremony.
"Once that is completed, construction of the new highway can begin," he said after the launching ceremony of the Santuni Masyarakat Orang Asli Perak Sejahtera 2030 and Simposium Batin here today.
Last year, Saarani announced that the federal government had approved the proposal for the construction of the WISE project.
The 60-km WISE highway will feature three lanes in both directions, starting from Gopeng through Batu Gajah, Siputeh, Manong, Tronoh, Beko, Seri Iskandar, and Kuala Kangsar.
The highway will serve as an alternative route to the Menora Tunnel on the North-South Expressway.
In other matters, Saarani said the state government has requested that the Rural and Regional Development Ministry continue with the Orang Asli House Assistance Project.
He said the request was conveyed to the ministry by state Rural Development, Plantations, Agriculture and Food Industry Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Zolkafly Harun last Friday.