Pahang’s local authorities have issued a stop-work order for a planned toll structure project at the popular hilltop resort of Genting Highlands.
A source from the Bentong municipal council (MPB) told Malaysia’s New Straits Times that the stop-work order was issued on Wednesday.
The source told the English daily that the developer did not submit any plans to the municipal council. It also did not get the green light from local authorities before beginning works at the site.
“The developer has to submit a building plan, planning permission and a plan consisting of infrastructure details such as piping and road layout,” the unnamed source said.
“But MPB did not receive anything. No permission was given to build the gantry,” the source added, after photographs of a toll gantry being constructed near Gohtong Jaya, a town close to the resort’s peak, appeared online on Sunday.
Malaysian Chinese newspaper Sin Chew Daily reported this week that the proposed toll would be managed by Lingkaran Cekap, a subsidiary of Genting Malaysia, which operates the SkyWorlds Theme Park and casinos at Resorts World Genting.
Motorists would have to pay the toll just once when going up the hill, a consultant for Lingkaran Cekap told the daily.
The consultant said the road was built and has been privately maintained by Genting Malaysia since the 1960s.
No decision had been made on the amount of the toll, or when the fee would kick in. It was also unclear if the charges would be uniformly applied across all vehicle types, such as private cars and tour buses.
However, the Pahang state government seemed to be in the dark over the plans.
“We (state government) have never discussed the proposed toll. I am gathering further details on the matter. Let me get more information about it first,” state Unity, Tourism and Culture Committee chairwoman Leong Yu Man said on Thursday.
A state government official, who spoke to NST on condition of anonymity, said the operator had not put forward any proposal to introduce a one-way trip toll charge for Genting Highlands-bound holidaymakers.
“If there is such a plan, it should be brought to the attention of the Pahang government, including the state government’s investment and privatisation department, before it is discussed at the state executive council meeting,” the official said on Friday.
