SEMENYIH — A proposed alternative alignment for the Semenyih Bypass Road could avoid Kampung Sungai Pening while adding only about 400m to the route, according to Kampung Sungai Pening Action Committee adviser Datuk Siajam Buyong.
The 78-year-old retired civil servant, who is also an affected landowner, argued that the alternative route should be assessed not merely on distance but on engineering, environmental and social considerations.
The residents' proposed alignment measures about 4.7km, compared with approximately 4.3km for the route currently planned through the village.
Siajam said the additional distance was relatively minor when weighed against the potential impact of acquiring village land and dividing an established community.
"There is a major difference in the elevation of the land. Kampung Sungai Pening is on low-lying ground, about 60m above sea level, while the SILK Highway is about 150m above sea level," he told Sinar Daily.
He said the proposed alignment through the village would require substantial earthworks to connect the lower-lying area with the higher-elevation Kajang Dispersal Link Expressway (SILK).
"If they proceed with the route through the village, they would have to raise the highway significantly, requiring large quantities of soil to be brought in and countless lorries to transport the material. This would make construction more time-consuming and costly," he claimed.
In contrast, Siajam said the residents' preferred route passes through land linked to an abandoned development project in Bandar Puncak Damai and sits at an elevation closer to that of the SILK Highway.
"The land along our proposed alternative is already at a higher elevation, around the same 150-metre level as the SILK Highway. This means they could use a cut-and-fill approach and utilise material from the site itself instead of importing large quantities of soil," he said.
He argued that any assessment of the bypass should consider earthwork requirements, construction costs, project timelines and community impact, rather than focusing solely on route length.
"This is why we believe the alternative deserves serious consideration. It may ultimately be more practical and cost-effective," he said.
The proposal is one of four alternative alignments developed by residents after studying survey maps and the surrounding terrain.
Siajam noted that part of the developer's proposed route would utilise an existing village road built in the mid-1980s.
"According to the survey maps, there are alternatives. The original proposed road alignment is about 5km long, while the section passing through Kampung Sungai Pening from Jalan Sungai Lalang to the middle of the village is about 3km.
"This is an existing village road built in the mid-1980s and we believe turning it into a bypass highway would undermine its original purpose," he said.
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The technical debate has become a key issue in the broader dispute over the proposed bypass, which is intended to link Jalan Sungai Lalang with the SILK Highway.
Residents argue that the current alignment would require the acquisition of privately owned land, including Malay Reserve Land in Kampung Sungai Pening. The government has previously said affected landowners would be offered replacement land within a nearby area earmarked for a Muslim cemetery.
Siajam stressed that villagers were not opposed to development or the bypass itself.
"We are not against development. We only want a solution that achieves the purpose of the bypass without unnecessarily taking our land," he said.