Johor wants talks with Putrajaya on third bridge

PETALING JAYA: A third bridge betweeen Johor and Singapore will be on the agenda next month when the Johor state government holds discussions with federal officials about easing traffic congestion at the Causeweay and Tuas.

Johor menteri besar Osman Sapian was quoted today as saying that a long-term solution was needed to ease traffic flow between the republic and Johor.

The discussions next month would be with officials of the Finance Ministry, Home Ministry and Works Ministry, he told the New Straits Times.

“There is a need (for a new bridge). Even the Prime Minister, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, had previously stated that the federal government has no objection to this. The issue now lies with Singapore,” he was quoted as saying.

Traffic congestion had reached “a critical level”, which might affect Malaysia’s economic development, he said.

Osman said he had shown Dr Mahathir a prospective site for the third bridge earlier this month.

Dr Mahathir has said that at least three to four bridges would be needed between the two countries, given that traffic flow was much greater than that between Penang Island and the mainland. (Two bridges connect the island to the mainland and the state government has proposed an undersea tunnel to the northern mainland.) - FMT