Yong, Sia and Ong cross Sungai Katibas on a ferry. In the background is the under-construction Katibas Bridge.
KAPIT: A group of adventurers here checked on the progress of the Kapit-Song-Kanowit road construction on Sunday.
The group consisted of Penghulu Sia Shui Poh, Kapit Chinese Chamber of Commerce chairman Datuk Yong Hua Sying, Lions Club of Kapit president Ong Hwang Seng and The Borneo Post reporter James Ling.
Scheduled to be completed by October 2018, the ongoing 81.9km road construction project came under the spotlight during the election campaign.
“During election campaigning, DAP (Democratic Action party) kept on stirring up sentiment against the ruling government that there is no road between Kapit-Song-Kanowit and the rest of the state. I heard from one of the sub-contractors that the road construction allows the use of four-wheel drives (4WD) from Kapit to Song and it’s about a two-hour journey covering 44km,” said Yong.
He said as such the group decided to find out how true the claim is.
From Kapit to Sungai Yong, the first 11km of the project, which was completed earlier this year, was a comfortable ride on RC3 standard tar-sealed road.
However, this changed to jungle road from Sungai Yong to Sungai Kaitbas.
“We had to travel along the mountainous and, sometimes, very muddy surface for about one hour and 40 minutes across the steep slope and ridges. Indeed it was very uncomfortable at times because of the uneven surface and also muddy stretches,” said Ling.
Signs of progress and construction were obvious throughout the nearly two-and-a-half-hour journey.
According to a spokesperson for the main contractor, workers from different sub-contractors are working eight-hour shifts on rotation and as such the work is continuous.
Upon reaching Sungai Katibas, the group had to park the 4WD vehicle at the riverbank and travel on a ferry belonging to the contractor across the river.
After a 10-minute ride, the group met with Penghulu Lim Eng Hock, who brought them to Song Bazaar.
The group also saw the progress of construction on the Katibas Bridge, which is about 1km away from the bazaar.
During the trip back to Kapit from Song, the journey took just one hour and 45 minutes as Yong, who was driving, was feeling more confident and familiar with the terrain.