THE concessionaires of four highways in the Klang Valley hope the government will be able to decide on the takeover of the highway concessions by the end of March this year.

Lingkaran Trans Kota Sdn Bhd (Litrak) and Sistem Penyuraian Trafik KL Barat Sdn Bhd (Sprint) chief executive officer Sazally Saidi said this is because discussions on the takeover are still ongoing, but no final decision from the government has been made.

“For the takeover process, discussions between the shareholders of the highway concessions and the government are still ongoing. However, there’s no answer yet (from the government) until now.

“We hope all the discussions will be finalised by end-March this year,” he said after presenting contributions in the form of necessities in conjunction with the Chinese New Year this Saturday to senior citizens of Rumah Sejahtera, Jenjarom, in Kuala Langat, today.

Present were Shah Alam Expressway (Kesas) chief operating officer Mohammed Shah Samin and Syarikat Mengurus Air Banjir dan Terowong Sdn Bhd (Smart) acting COO Mohd Noor Mohd Ali.

Sazally said this when asked to comment on developments related to the takeover of the four highway concessions – Kesas, Smart, Damansara-Puchong Expressway (LDP) and Sprint – announced by the government last year.

The government, through the Minister of Finance Incorporated (MoF Inc) had last year presented takeover offers to the four concessionaires for RM6.2 billion in an effort to lighten the burden of the people via toll reductions.

The breakdown of the offer prices are LDP for RM2.47 billion; Sprint (RM1.984 billion); Kesas (RM1,377 billion); and, Smart for RM369 million.

In another development, Sazally said the management of the Sprint, Kesas and Smart highways will deploy patrol officers to assist and facilitate highway users’ travel during the run-up to the CNY celebrations this weekend.

“Usually, two and three days before a festive season, there will be congestion on the highways as vehicles leave the cities. Hence, patrol officers will be deployed at certain locations to help keep the traffic smooth and facilitate the users’ journey back home.

“Sprint will deploy 68 patrol officers, Kesas 45 while Smart will have 16 officers,” he said. – Bernama, January 21, 2020.