TALKS for the proposed construction of the Petaling Jaya Dispersal Link (PJD Link) highway are still ongoing, Selangor executive councillor Izham Hashim said.

The Malaysian Highway Authority has informed the state government that federal government and the developer are still in the process of negotiating the project, he said.

As talks are still with the federal government, Izham said that, to date, the concessionaire has not made any application for a second presentation to the Selangor executive council.

He also said that before the project can commence, the concessionaire must carry out environmental, social, and traffic impact assessments.

“This includes holding public engagement sessions with residents affected by the proposed alignment.

“The land acquisition process must also be completed first.

“All conditions must be resolved before the concession company can begin construction of this highway,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

On April 3, the Coalition Against PJD Link asked the state government to state its position on the proposed 34.3km dual-carriage expressway.

The confusion stemmed from news that the project was still being discussed in the Selangor assembly, despite the Pakatan Harapan government’s statement on September 30 last year that projects similar to the controversial Kinrara-Damansara Expressway (Kidex) would not be revived.

News of the proposed PJD Link was first reported late in 2020, when Izham said at the time that it had been discussed at a state economic council meeting.

This has led to the public perception that the PJD Link was merely a replacement of Kidex.

In January last year, developer PJD Link (M) Sdn Bhd was said to be reviving plans for the highway project that will cut across Petaling Jaya, linking areas in Puchong and Bukit Jalil to Damansara.

Coalition Against PJD Link leader Sheikh Moqhtar Kadir had said the project should be scrapped as the state government has already rejected the Kidex project.

“As we can see, the PH government’s statement has rejected Kidex and any highways that are similar to it.

“So, we want to know why PJD Link is still being discussed in the state assembly,” he said.

The PH statement last year was jointly issued by Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari, Izham and Selangor DAP chairman Gobind Singh Deo.

Izham said that, according to the state government’s study, there are some differences in the proposed alignment of the PJD Link compared to Kidex, but he did not elaborate further. 

On March 17, Izham, in the state assembly, said the federal government was in the final stages of drawing up a concession agreement with PJD Link, after the project was endorsed by the cabinet in November.

He reiterated that the company needs to present the status and findings of the impact assessments in the second presentation.

“These conditions have been set by the state government to avoid issues such as unfinished land matters that plague existing highway projects, as well as protests by local residents against the alignment of highways that pass through residential areas.”

He added that the state government’s meeting on September 30 determined that PJD Link would be implemented in accordance with the application processing procedure.

This, he said, is through negotiation under section 20A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1976.

Protest memo to menteri besar

Sheikh Moqhtar said that on September 1 last year, the PKR political bureau sought clarification from Amirudin.

“It was confirmed that PJD Link was a rebranding of the Kidex project and that approval had not been given for the project.”

He said that if the state government is still open to the project, then residents will submit a memorandum of protest.

“We will be citing the September statements by the PKR political bureau and PH.

“We hope to seek a meeting with the menteri besar and expect to send the memorandum by end of the month, or early next month.”

Sheikh Moqhtar also added that they will be sending a letter of complaint to the PH presidential council.

Petaling Jaya residents have opposed the mega project since 2016, as well as its Kidex incarnation, saying the elevated highway would cut through their neighbourhoods and affect up to 1,000 homes.

The residents said the proposed highway would bring enormous traffic flow, carbon emissions, air pollution, and noise and visual disturbances.

It was reported that the proposed highway was to run along Jalan Penchala and Jalan Sultan (PJ Sentral), crossing the Federal Highway towards Jalan Professor Khoo Kay Khim (previously Jalan Semangat) and Jalan Harapan, and then turning west along the Sprint Highway towards the New Klang Valley Expressway Damansara toll plaza.

Real estate portal PropertyGuru in 2016 highlighted questions from residents if the same developer behind Kidex was trying to push the highway project ahead with renamed PJD Link. – May 11, 2022.