50% of AWAS saman receipts to fund safety initiatives – lighting up accident hotspots, wildlife crossings

The proposal to establish a funding mechanism for road safety initiatives was given the green light by the cabinet’s committee on road safety and traffic congestion (JK-MKKJR) yesterday, said transport minister Anthony Loke. The proposal was to allow 50% of AWAS saman receipts to be channeled to the transport ministry for road safety.

“Among the initiatives is the lighting up of highway accident hotspots, and this will be implemented immediately. We hope that we get a funding source that’s continuous so that we can take mitigation steps to reduce the risk of accidents,” he said in Putrajaya yesterday, reported by Bernama.

Loke also said that safety on the Gerik-Jeli East-West Highway, especially with regards to animals crossing the road, will be improved on. This follows a sad incident last week where a mother elephant refused to leave its calf that was knocked down by a trailer.

“Among the safety aspects that we will look at is the lighting up of that area and other aspects such as providing a crossing for wildlife,” Loke said, adding that wildlife safety will also be in consideration for rail projects.

“We will look into this matter for the ongoing Gemas-Johor Bahru rail project as there was an incident of elephants crossing the train tracks. We take this seriously not just because we want to protect wildlife, but also to protect human lives. Train tracks are high risk as trains move fast, and if they hit wildlife, especially elephants, the effect will be bad,” the Seremban MP said.

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