KUCHING – Sarawak’s Transport Minister Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin says he will bring to the attention of his Federal counterpart Anthony Loke urgent matters involving the state lorry industry as operators grapple with ever-increasing compliance and operational issues.
Dato Sri Lee made the announcement on Wednesday, following an engagement session with lorry transport stakeholders which involved representatives of government departments, enforcement agencies and industry associations.
It’s to discuss on the compliances of regulatory standards and infrastructure problems which commercial vehicles operators have been facing lately in Sarawak.
He said he would be sending an official letter to the Federal Minister asking for his ministerial strings of attendance, saying that close attention must always be paid to Sarawak’s geographical realities and practicalities when federal transport policies are implemented.
He added that the state lorry industry is “facing increasingly tough compliance demands” and needs practical, short-term solutions.
They discussed about phased implementation of Speed Limiter Devices (SLD), compulsion to use Global Positioning System (GPS) in vehicles and enforcement of Weight Restriction Order (WRO) here.
They said they feared that with only four approved SLD installation agents available in Sarawak, this would not be able to cater for demand on the much-travelled rural routes across the state.
It is feared that by only have a small amount of agents, operators will struggle to keep within the deadlines laid out be the Federal Government. Dato Sri Lee agreed with these concerns, adding that Sarawak needs a more dynamic and pragmatic policy on implementation.
He recommended broadening the number of agents they allow and distributing them more evenly throughout divisions, so everyone can be more compliant and on a level playing ground.
He also disclosed that the process of setting up a meeting with the Federal Transport Minister had started last month, but scheduling issues had stalled it.
Items such as lorry loading and highway structures also came under scrutiny in the session. Dato Sri Lee also expressed his continuous in working with JKR, MIPD and CVLB.
The discussions also covered ideas for improving or revising the classification of R5 roads in List 1 to accommodate commercial vehicle operations and enforcement measures more effectively.
Also, present in the engagement session Were Kota Sentosa Assemblyman Wilfred Yap Yau Sin, Bukit Assek Assemblyman Joseph Chieng Jin Ek, MOTS Permanent Secretary Datu Wong Hee Sieng, CVLB Sarawak Director Cornelia Wong Chui And MIPD Head of Infrastructure And Project Coordination Division Ts. Chang Chee Kiong.
Those also involved were a team of JPJ Sarawak, PUSPAKOM Sarawak Sdn Bhd, MIROS and the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM), as well as those from several industry associations such as the Federation of Sarawak Lorry Association, Sarawak Lorries Transportation Association, Sarawak Forwarding Agencies Association and the Sibu Automobile Repairers Association.
The session emphasized that concerted efforts between government and commercial entities were needed to guarantee Sarawak transport policies are manageable and can be sensitively adapted to the local environment.
