By The construction of a third bridge linking Singapore and Malaysia will be among several mega projects slated to begin next year, said Chief Minister of Johor Osman Sapian.
The Chief Minister said on Sunday (12 Nov) that the third bridge, which will replace the 95-year-old Woodlands-JB Causeway “may or may not be crooked as we have yet to finalise the design.”
Touching on the purpose of building the new bridge, Mr Osman said: “This is to solve the congestion at both entry points (of the Causeway) where it only gets worse during holidays.”
Just last month, Mr Osman brought up the proposal of a crooked bridge — a proposal that was first brought forward by Malaysian Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad during his first premiership under the Barisan Nasional administration — on the basis that a third bridge would reduce congestion into Singapore.
Malaysia’s Minister of Economic Affairs Azmin Ali however said that the third bridge is not a “priority” for Putrajaya at the moment as the government faces an astronomical amount of national debt accrued by the previous administration.
Dr Mahathir had previously declared that Malaysia does not need Singapore’s consent for the crooked bridge.
However, the design was modified to include a sharp curve on the Malaysian side that would allow vessels to pass underneath after Singapore objected to the project.
Consequently, the bridge will be connected to the unmodified part of its structure from the Singapore side.