The Public Works Department (PWD) is taking steps to address the safety hazards posed by the lack of illumination along a section of Jalan Bongoon Kedondongan Ganang in Penampang, where an elderly woman was recently run over when she went for a night-time stroll.
City Hall, on the other hand, recently restored the streetlights on parts of Jalan Kolam, Jalan Tuaran and near a Luyang commercial centre which had apparently been shrouded in darkness over the past few weeks.
A PWD spokesman said streetlights would be installed at strategic locations along a 916.6metre span of Jalan Bongoon Kedondongan Ganang, once it had an allocation to do so.
“Our personnel inspected the portion of the stretch between the junction near ITCC and the one leading to Taman Digot to identify potential places where these amenities might be sited,” he said.
The Department was made to understand that the accident involving the senior citizen had taken near the turn off to the neighbourhood, according to him.
He said a proposal to obtain solar streetlights for the road would be submitted to the agency’s higher management.
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“Our superiors will have to determine how best to proceed on this matter.”
Meanwhile, City Hall will step up efforts to look after the public lighting within its rating area.
A spokesman for its Engineering Department said checks were made of the affected roads, shortly after it was contacted by the media.
He said a problem inside the control panel rendered the lights on a one kilometre median of Jalan Kolam – between the junctions to Jalan Kebajikan and Jalan Maktab Sabah – inoperative.
“The power supply to the lights were found to have tripped,” he said. “We suspect that this irregularity may have been triggered by the inclement weather which Kota Kinabalu has been experiencing on and off since the beginning of the month.”
He said the contractor’s workers reset the affected mechanisms in the control panel for these amenities.
“They later went up in the articulated arm of the sky-master to double check that the bulbs and the lanterns for the lights were in order.”
He said these technicians tested the lights to determine if the road was adequately illuminated that night.
“They also went back after during the day to ensure that the timer for these amenities was functioning as it should.”
In the case of Jalan Tuaran, the spokesman said, more than 10 lights on the divider between the Mile 5 cemetery and the traffic lights near Likas Plaza were left out of order after the electricity meter for these amenities sustained some damage.
He said the median spanned a distance of some 978.3metres.
“We are working together with Sabah Electricity (SE) to resolve the problem with the meter. Our personnel will follow-up on this matter with the company to ensure that the affected portion of Jalan Tuaran is properly lit as soon as possible”
Where Damai Plaza was concerned the spokesman said another group of technicians attended to the damaged bulbs and lanterns for the lights in front of shops, off Lorong Pokok Kayu Manis.
He said two sets of these respective components were replaced in this instance.
“Repairs were made on the spot, with the contractor’s workers also changing a 250-watt ballast and an ignitor,” he said.
He explained that a “ballast” regulated the electrical current to the lanterns and provided sufficient voltage to start the lanterns, according to him.
An “ignitor”, meanwhile, functioned as a starter to increase the initial voltage to make the lanterns glow, according to him.
While City Hall was primarily focused on looking after the safety of motorists who used those stretches which were under its jurisdiction, the spokesman said it also hoped to improve their driving experience.
“Our contractor has been asked to step up his surveillance of these roads to ensure that they are properly lit at night.”
When asked how often maintenance was carried out on its streetlights, he said there was no fixed-schedule for this work.
“These amenities are attended to as and when it becomes necessary to do so.”
