If you ever traveled by land on a long journey of 10-12, 14 hours sometimes from Kuching to Miri, you will know what it's like traveling on our so called Pan-Borneo Highway, 45 years and some parts of as long as 1047.18km highway are still under construction. Started building in 1963 till now, we are already in the year 2008. According to the source, of the 90% completed only a few miles of road were left to be completed and when is the last 10% going to be completed after these 45 years of waiting?
45 years Selangau (Sibu-Bintulu) road is still a gravel road!
I do remember as was always being talked about Rejang bridge at Lanang was promised to the state connecting the road Sarikei to Sibu long before I was born. My parents used to talk about it when we were young and the bridge was only finally fulfilled after almost 3o years of talking in the Malaysia Plans. My parents (moved to Sarikei from Kuching 30+ years ago, where my dad traveled Sarikei-Sibu due to work often when we were young) 30 years and now a proud grandparents of 7 grandchildren, my dad still travel Sarikei-Sibu often can now feel relief not to worry any more about last ferry service usually ends at 6pm daily.
If you missed the ferries, you will have to use another alternative and longer road we used to call Julau road which was several years ago or the last I traveled on was still so much a dusty-unsealed gravel road. I can still remember that so well, we were talking about our then PM the whole journey to Miri in a van with a school teacher although that was like many years ago. The dust from the unsealed gravel road caused the driver to switch on the headlights, slow down the vehicle every time a heavy truck passing by us carry cloud of dust that blurred the vision ahead the road and worse, flying gravel.
And I was in Miri, remembering traveling home to Sarikei on one CNY and seeing long queue of vehicles crawling to reach the only way to cross over that mighty Rejang river at Lanang to get to the other side by ferry services makes me feel like, gosh! it's a long way home. It took long hours of slow moving on the road to reach the ferry points during approaching season traveling from north to south in Sarawak. The same scenario happens at Sg. Tujuh, Limbang to travel on to KK by land. Some times, travel in Sarawak from north to south takes days in the early days due to poor ferry services we had back then.
I remember seeing police traffics were assigned to guard at Lanang's ferry point due to complaints made about Q-jumpers and fights particularly by those of Brunei's plate vehicles and how cars crawl to reach the ferry point in the heat afternoon sun and to avoid overheating car's engine, some drivers push their cars forward with car's engine off ":|
I do remember as was always being talked about Rejang bridge at Lanang was promised to the state connecting the road Sarikei to Sibu long before I was born. My parents used to talk about it when we were young and the bridge was only finally fulfilled after almost 3o years of talking in the Malaysia Plans. My parents (moved to Sarikei from Kuching 30+ years ago, where my dad traveled Sarikei-Sibu due to work often when we were young) 30 years and now a proud grandparents of 7 grandchildren, my dad still travel Sarikei-Sibu often can now feel relief not to worry any more about last ferry service usually ends at 6pm daily.
If you missed the ferries, you will have to use another alternative and longer road we used to call Julau road which was several years ago or the last I traveled on was still so much a dusty-unsealed gravel road. I can still remember that so well, we were talking about our then PM the whole journey to Miri in a van with a school teacher although that was like many years ago. The dust from the unsealed gravel road caused the driver to switch on the headlights, slow down the vehicle every time a heavy truck passing by us carry cloud of dust that blurred the vision ahead the road and worse, flying gravel.
And I was in Miri, remembering traveling home to Sarikei on one CNY and seeing long queue of vehicles crawling to reach the only way to cross over that mighty Rejang river at Lanang to get to the other side by ferry services makes me feel like, gosh! it's a long way home. It took long hours of slow moving on the road to reach the ferry points during approaching season traveling from north to south in Sarawak. The same scenario happens at Sg. Tujuh, Limbang to travel on to KK by land. Some times, travel in Sarawak from north to south takes days in the early days due to poor ferry services we had back then.
Selangau is a very small bazaar (in between Sibu and Bintulu) with only two rows of shophouses is also a stopping point for most road travelers and express buses from north to south of the state for a break or ease themselves after the long hours drive.
Here is where one portion of the bad unsealed gravel road can still be seen. I know it has been under construction since many years ago (probably more than 10 years) the road we travel often lately.
Here is where one portion of the bad unsealed gravel road can still be seen. I know it has been under construction since many years ago (probably more than 10 years) the road we travel often lately.
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