{"id":3154,"date":"2026-05-26T05:19:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T05:19:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/?p=3154"},"modified":"2026-05-26T05:19:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T05:19:19","slug":"sarawak-makes-history-with-longest-river-crossing-bridge-batang-lupar-1-officially-opens-to-the-public","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/?p=3154","title":{"rendered":"Sarawak Makes History with Longest river-crossing Bridge \u2014 Batang Lupar 1 Officially Opens to the Public"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sarawak has officially opened the Batang Lupar 1 Bridge to the public, marking a major milestone in the state\u2019s ongoing infrastructure transformation. Opened on May 21, 2026 at 4PM by Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, the new bridge arrives just ahead of the Hari Gawai and Hari Raya Haji festive season, helping ease travel for thousands of road users across the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stretching 4.884km across the Batang Lupar River, the RM900 million cable-stayed structure is now recognised as Malaysia\u2019s longest river-crossing bridge. Fully funded by the Sarawak government, the toll-free bridge links Sebuyau and Triso (Maludam), eliminating one of the state\u2019s final major ferry crossings between Kuching and coastal Sarawak.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Following the bridge opening, the long-running Sebuyau-Triso ferry service officially ceased operations on May 22, ending decades of dependency on ferry transport in the area. Built to JKR R5 standards with a two-lane single carriageway design supported by 87 river piers, construction on the bridge began in 2021 as part of Sarawak\u2019s wider Coastal Road Network and Second Trunk Road masterplan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Abang Johari, the improved road and bridge network has dramatically reduced travel times in Sarawak. Journeys that previously took up to six or seven hours can now be completed much faster, significantly improving connectivity between towns and rural areas.<\/p>\n\n\n

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The Batang Lupar 1 Bridge is also part of a larger infrastructure push under the 12th Malaysia Plan, which includes the construction of 21 major bridges across Sarawak. So far, 10 bridges have already opened, replacing six ferry routes, while another eight projects are expected to be completed before the end of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, Sarawak is continuing development on Batang Lupar Bridge No.2 under the Second Trunk Road project. Located near Sri Aman Town, the RM236.4 million project is being developed by Naim Gamuda (NAGA) JV Sdn Bhd and features an 870-meter cable-stayed bridge with two 145.5-meter towers alongside a 2.1km approach road.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Once fully completed, Batang Lupar Bridge No.2 is expected to become Malaysia\u2019s tallest cable-stayed bridge and the country\u2019s second-longest cable-stayed span after the Sungai Johor Bridge. The project will further strengthen connectivity between Sri Aman, Betong, the Coastal Highway Road Network, and the Pan Borneo Highway, while also shortening the Kuching-to-Betong journey by approximately 104km.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, both Batang Lupar bridge projects represent a major leap forward for Sarawak\u2019s transportation network, reducing reliance on ferry services while improving mobility, logistics, and regional economic growth across the state.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sarawak has officially opened the Batang Lupar 1 Bridge to the public, marking a major milestone in the state\u2019s ongoing infrastructure transformation. Opened on May 21, 2026 at 4PM by Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, the new bridge arrives just ahead of the Hari Gawai and Hari Raya Haji festive season, helping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3155,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3154","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3154"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3154\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3161,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3154\/revisions\/3161"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shiftfocus.my\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}