Solar Lights Transform Gerik-Jeli Highway After Crash Concerns

A stretch of the Gerik-Jeli East-West Highway (JRTB) is finally seeing light as newly installed solar-powered street lights brighten up the previously dim and dangerous route. 

The installation of the solar-powered lamps is part of an ongoing effort by the Perak Public Works Department (JKR), with priority given to areas marked by recent accidents including a fatal crash involving a bus carrying Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students and a Perodua Alza.

While questions have long surrounded the road’s safety, the Works Ministry says the highway itself isn’t to blame. A 2024 inspection found the road structurally sound.  More importantly, national data shows that just 13% of road accidents are caused by infrastructure, while over 80% stem from human error.

Photo: Bernama.

“We’re not ignoring the concerns, but it’s clear that behaviour behind the wheel is the bigger risk,” the ministry said in a statement. Its Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi recently revealed that from 2023 to May 2024, the Public Works Department spent RM5.49 billion maintaining over 15,000 kilometres of federal roads including the JRTB. This year alone, RM55 million has been allocated specifically for the Gerik-Jeli route.

The breakdown includes RM35 million for resurfacing, RM14.5 million for new safety features like guardrails and drainage, RM3.59 million for solar lighting, and RM1 million for pavement assessments across Perak.