ENGINEERING NOSTALGIA
INGENIEUR
Johor Bahru Causeway , 1960
By Cheo Hong Keyong
Johor Bahru Causeway , 1960 : Notice the cross-flow current of the balancing culverts in the middle section . Most were later blocked after a series of widening works resulting in stagnant water on both sides of the structures . Notice the vehicles were mainly of continental make such as Volkswagen , Austin , Ford and Vauxhall . ( Source : Jabatan Penerangan Malaysia .)
The history of the Johor Bahru Causeway dates back to a proposal by the Federated Malay States ( FMS ) Director of Public Works , W . Eyre Kenny to build a rubble Causeway . The proposal was supported by the Federal Council of the FMS . The plan by consultant engineers Messrs Coode , Fitzmaurice , Wilson & Mitchell of Westminster , UK was approved in 1919 .
The Causeway construction was one of the largest engineering projects in Malaya then . Tidal studies were carried out prior to the construction , and design features considered its structure , surroundings , and continued ship passage through the Straits . The orientation also factored in the current railway terminations on both shores . It was designed to be 3,465ft long , 60ft wide , sufficient enough for two lines of metre-gauge railway tracks and a 26-foot-wide roadway , with space reserved for laying of water mains at a later date . Floodgates were incorporated at the lock to control the tides . A total of 24 balancing culverts were laid underneath the Causeway to allow cross current flow between two sides of the structure .
The construction contract was awarded to Messrs Topham , Jones & Railton Ltd of London on June 30 , 1919 . The Causeway was officially completed in 1924 at an estimated cost of 17 million Straits dollars . Over 2,300 staff and labourers were employed during the course of the construction . An opening ceremony was conducted in Johor on June 28 , 1924 .
The Causeway was widened in 1964 and further widened in 1976 , and again from 1989 to 1991 due to increasing traffic volume .
REFERENCE
Wikipedia Jabatan Penerangan Malaysia
80 VOL 87 JULY-SEPTEMBER 2021