River taxis to ply Sarawak River soon – Abang Johari

0

KUCHING: River taxis cruising on Sarawak River will be a regular sight once the state government completes the building of five jetties between Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) and Kubah Ria.

Minister of Tourism and Heritage Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg disclosed to The Borneo Post that the project was still at the preliminary stage as the fare structure had just been approved by Sarawak Rivers Board.

He added that they also needed to study the type of riverine vehicle suitable for Sarawak River.

“Currently, there are only two river taxis in operation besides the normal conventional boats (perahu tambang), said Abang Johari who was met at his Hari Raya open house on Wednesday.

“With the money available, the state government has to provide these jetties first,” he added.

He revealed that the project would cost millions, and that tenders for building the jetties had been called.

Abang Johari explained that being awarded tourism city status through Kuching South City Council  (MBKS) recently indicated that Kuching had met the standard recognised by international bodies.

He also said the state government needed to upgrade the infrastructure within the city itself.

“This is to improve tourism standards which dovetail the government’s effort to improve public transport system and overall quality of living in the city,” enthused Abang Johari.

“The transport structure will be fully integrated into the overall city transport system when the north-south land transport system is in place,” he added.

He further said that the state government encouraged riverine transport to be in place first because there was no infrastructure cost incurred.

Abang Johari pointed out that to ensure connectivity between river and land transports, an interchange would be built along the river.

“This interchange will be built along the river as there will be less congestion. It will be located between BCCK isthmus and Batu Kawah new township,” he said.